A Minneapolis man with a prior felony conviction has entered a guilty plea for his involvement in a large-scale fentanyl distribution operation in Saint Paul and Southern Minnesota. Georgio Javon d'Larente Baymon, 37, admitted to the possession with intent to distribute thousands of fentanyl pills, as announced by United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger. The guilty plea was entered yesterday in the U.S. District Court before Judge Ann D. Montgomery, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota.

Court documents revealed that Baymon sold fentanyl on two separate occasions: 860 pills on January 8, 2023, to an individual in Mankato and another 600 pills to a second purchaser on January 21. While checked into the Intercontinental Hotel in Saint Paul on May 2, a bag containing a shocking 8,500 fentanyl pills was discovered by hotel staff in his room, which they promptly reported to law enforcement.

Baymon, having left the bag behind, returned to the hotel to the awaiting officers. The situation escalated as Baymon attempted to evade arrest; he triggered a fire alarm creating a chaotic scene and was eventually detained in the hotel basement. The concerted efforts of the Minnesota River Valley Drug Task Force, the St. Paul Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension were instrumental in his apprehension and the subsequent investigation.

The impending sentencing for Baymon will arrive following the guilty plea, with the date yet to be scheduled. The case's prosecution is led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys William C. Mattessich and Matthew D. Forbes, who have been at the forefront of pushing the judicial response to a regional epidemic of fentanyl distribution threatening the community's fabric.