TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Aug 6, 2025

A Bristol man was sentenced today to more than 24 years in federal prison for distributing fentanyl that led to a fatal overdose, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee announced in a press release. U.S. District Judge Clifton L. Corker handed down the 292-month sentence, followed by three years of supervised release. Whitaker pleaded guilty to distributing fentanyl-laced counterfeit Roxicodone pills that caused a person’s death in Sullivan County in 2023. He was arrested in April 2024 after fleeing a traffic stop and was found in possession of a large quantity of fentanyl pills, $13,754 in cash, and more than 130 firearms, including stolen weapons. The case was part of Operation Take Back America and involved several local, state and federal agencies.