Fentanyl Dealer Sentenced to 63 Months for Trafficking Narcotics from H Street Storefront

WASHINGTON - Pierre Black, 63, a resident of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today to 63 months in prison for unlawful distribution of fentanyl, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

"Pierre Black operated a street-level fentanyl distribution scheme out of a storefront in the District," said U.S. Attorney Pirro. "He sold the drug to an undercover officer on six occasions-an amount large enough to equal roughly 80,000 potentially lethal doses. He also kept a loaded firearm alongside his supply and conducted these activities in a neighborhood already reeling from a fatal overdose."

Black pleaded guilty on Jan. 13, 2026, before U.S. District Court Judge Carl J. Nichols to one count of unlawful distribution of fentanyl. In addition to the 63-month prison sentence, Judge Nichols ordered Black to serve three years of supervised release and to forfeit $13,310.

According to court papers, in early 2025, the Metropolitan Police Department's Violent Crime Suppression Division Overdose Section and the Drug Enforcement Administration began investigating drug sales in the 700 block of H Street NE following a suspected fatal fentanyl overdose in the area. Investigators identified Black as a street-level fentanyl trafficker operating out of a store in that block.

As part of the investigation, an undercover officer conducted controlled purchases from Black. Over six purchases, the officer bought a total of 177 grams of fentanyl for more than $13,000.

On Sept. 5, 2025, officers arrested Black and searched his residence. In a bedroom closet safe, they recovered a loaded Springfield Armory XD-9 9mm handgun with nine rounds of ammunition in a 10-round magazine. On top of a safe, officers found 55.3 grams of a substance containing fentanyl and heroin. In the kitchen, they found an additional 14.27 grams of a substance containing fentanyl, heroin, and medetomidine, a sedative used by veterinarians. Black admitted that he possessed the firearm in connection with his drug trafficking.

Black has eight prior convictions, including four for drug distribution or possession with intent to distribute.

This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Division Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Solomon Eppel.

The 53.90 grams of fentanyl purchased on July 28, 2025 (left), and the 55.13 grams of fentanyl purchased on Aug. 21, 2025 (right).

Investigators recovered a loaded Springfield Armory XD-9 9mm handgun with nine rounds of ammunition in a 10-round magazine.

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