Jury returns a guilty verdict in fentanyl case

Hays County District Attorney Kelly Higgins recently announced that a Hays County jury found Caden Farese guilty of possession of a controlled substance – fentanyl, a state jail felony. That jury subsequently sentenced him to 18 months in state jail.

According to a press release from Higgins, police and EMS arrived at Motel 6 in San Marcos in response to a potential overdose. An individual was found unconscious and attempts to revive that person were unsuccessful. The individual died as a result of the toxic effects of fentanyl.

At the same time, Higgins said the defendant [Farese] was found unconscious in the room directly above.

Police and EMS successfully revived him. A lethal amount of Fentanyl was found in the defendant’s room, Higgins stated.

Farese was charged with an additional count of delivery of a controlled substance, though the jury found him not guilty on that charge.

This is the first fentanyl- related case presented to a Hays County jury. It was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Sean Szlachtowski and ADA Jon English.

“The verdict shows that the citizens of Hays County do not want fentanyl plaguing their community,' Szlachtowski said. 'We will continue to prosecute crimes involving this deadly drug no matter how big or small.”

District Attorney Kelly Higgins said, “My office remain committed to seeking tough sentences in cases involving the deadly controlled substance Fentanyl.”