A Central Coast man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for smuggling fentanyl into a federal prison which led to the death of a jail inmate.
Prosecutors say in October of 2022, Kaelen Wendel was booked into Santa Barbara County’s North Branch Jail. They say he smuggled the fentanyl into jail in a candy container.
They say he then made a deal with another inmate for the drugs in exchange for items from the jail commissary. The inmate involved in the trade, and another inmate identified only as E.E. used the drugs. Both men overdosed, and E.E. died.
Wendel pled guilty to one count of distribution of fentanyl, leading to the 20 year sentence. The other inmate involved in the drug deal received a seven year sentence.
