A 30-year old man from Clarksville has been sentenced to serve 25 years in federal prison for selling fentanyl while on bond for state murder charges, according to the Middle District of Tennessee U.S. Attorney’s Office.
In January 2022, Mark Ellis, while possessing a 9mm pistol, sold a fentanyl mixture to a confidential informant working at the direction of law enforcement, according to evidence admitted at trial cited by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Officers who executed a search warrant at the home of one of Ellis’ family members in Clarksville seized a pound of fentanyl. Officers also recovered a Ruger 9mm pistol from Ellis’ vehicle.
Ellis was under electronic monitoring and out on bond from an unrelated murder charge in Montgomery County during the drug deal investigation and at the time of his arrest, the U.S. Attorney’s Office notes.
Despite this, Ellis and his wife, Yennifer Angeles, made plans to continue drug trafficking activities even while Ellis remained incarcerated, according to a recording of a call between the couple played by the prosecution at trial.
Angeles pled guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl and was sentenced in August 2023.
Ellis was convicted in May 2023 after a two-day trial of Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl, Sale of Fentanyl, Possession of over 400 grams of Fentanyl with Intent to Distribute, Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime, and Possession of a Firearm as a Convicted Felon.
“Fentanyl continues to poison countless people throughout Middle Tennessee,” U.S. Attorney Henry C. Leventis said in a statement. “Combating fentanyl trafficking is a top priority for this office and we will continue to work aggressively to hold accountable those who deal this deadly drug. Today’s sentence should send a clear message that fentanyl dealers face serious consequences.”
– – –
Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Mark Austin Ellis” by Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and “Courtroom” by Carol Highsmith.
