RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — A fentanyl dealer in Smithfield was sentenced on Thursday to 292 months (a little over 24 years) in prison for selling a deadly narcotics mixture that killed a young man, according to the Department of Justice.

Shamel Nesbitt, 32, was convicted for the charge last August for the death of Lucas Urbina, 20, who died November of 2017.

“Fentanyl is killing Americans in record numbers and shortening American life expectancy,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “Our overdose crisis won’t be solved by prosecution alone, but sentences like this are a warning to drug pushers who lace fentanyl into their supply. Those who cause death will face severe consequences.”    

The investigation began back on November 19, 2017, after Urbina was rushed to the hospital with several friends after using a substance and overdosing, according to court documents.

A second friend of Urbina’s also suffered from an overdose from using the same narcotics. Both young men were revived, but Urbina never regained consciousness and later died.

Text messages and dialed phone numbers showed on Urbina’s phone that he reached out to someone listed as “Mista,” according to sources. Officers then quickly linked that number to Nesbitt.

Nesbitt made statements to law enforcements about how he saw Urbina the day of the overdose but claimed that he didn’t sell him the narcotics.