COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – Two men were sentenced Thursday, for their involvement in a conspiracy to distribute fentanyl which resulted in serious bodily injury to two victims.

According to public court documents, 23-year-old Curclund Jackson VanAernam, of Atlantic, and 31-year-old Luis Alberto Hernandez, of Omaha, distributed fentanyl pills in Omaha and the surrounding areas, including Atlantic, Iowa. At least two victims overdosed after ingesting pills containing fentanyl that VanAernam and Hernandez distributed. Both victims survived after receiving doses of Narcan.

VanAernam was sentenced to 16 years in federal prison and will be required to serve a five-year term of supervised release following his prison term. Hernandez was sentenced to 22 years in prison, to be followed by a four-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Iowa Department of Public Safety Division of Narcotics Enforcement, the Southwest Iowa Narcotics Enforcement (SWINE) Task Force, Atlantic Police Department, Cass County Sheriff’s Office, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Omaha Police Department investigated the case.

Fentanyl has become the leading cause of drug overdose deaths in the United States. Counterfeit, fentanyl-laced pills often resemble pharmaceutical pills, but contain potentially lethal doses of fentanyl. Visit the Drug Enforcement Administration’s website to learn more about One Pill Can Kill.