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Man facing deportation order charged with dealing fentanyl near Virginia high school

Law enforcement connected the suspect to student overdoses in Loudoun County following a search that yielded cash and illicit pills.

The short version

  • Isaac Melendez-Carranza was arrested in Loudoun County, Virginia, and charged with distributing fentanyl within 1,000 feet of a school.
  • The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office linked the suspect to May drug overdoses involving students at Park View High School.
  • Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged a detainer for Melendez-Carranza, who received a final deportation order in July 2024.

Key facts

  • Isaac Melendez-Carranza, a 31-year-old Salvadoran national, was arrested on August 20 and charged with distributing fentanyl within 1,000 feet of a school.[Fox News]
  • Authorities seized roughly 100 pills and $1,000 in cash during a search of Melendez-Carranza's home.[Fox News]
  • The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office connected the suspect to suspected student overdoses occurring at Park View High School in May.[Fox News]
  • Melendez-Carranza entered the U.S. illegally in 2016, was released on bond, and was given a final order of removal by an immigration judge on July 18, 2024.[Fox News]
  • ICE placed an immigration detainer on Melendez-Carranza, who is being held without bond pending the resolution of his local charges.[Fox News]

What remains uncertain

  • Loudoun County Public Schools noted in May that it was unclear if the student health incidents were interconnected or definitively caused by controlled substances.[Fox News]
  • The timeline and likelihood of additional arrests in the investigation remain unspecified by the sheriff's office.[Fox News]

Sources