Fort Wayne Man Sentenced to 190 Months in Prison

FORT WAYNE - Michael O. Beers, 39 years old, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Chief Judge Holly A. Brady after pleading guilty to possessing with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, announced United States Attorney Adam L. Mildred.

Beers was sentenced to 190 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release.

According to documents in the case, in October 2024, officers found Beers unconscious behind the steering wheel of a running vehicle parked in a gas station parking lot. When officers went to check on Beers, they found a loaded handgun holstered on his hip. A search of his car revealed large amounts of heroin and fentanyl, a digital scale, and other drug items. Fentanyl is extremely dangerous and potentially lethal, and Beers intended to sell hundreds of thousands of lethal doses of fentanyl in the community. In addition to his armed drug trafficking, Beers has a significant criminal history with prior weapons and drug convictions, making his possession of the firearm unlawful.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Indiana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas with assistance from the Fort Wayne Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin C. Sheridan.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.