Dion’te Wingate, a 24-year-old resident of Crestview, Florida, has been sentenced to 162 months in prison. He previously pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing with intent to distribute significant amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Court records reveal that the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) searched Wingate on December 14, 2023. He was found in a vehicle with a wanted felon and illegal drugs, which led to the discovery of large quantities of methamphetamine, fentanyl powder, and fentanyl pills on his person. OCSO encountered him again on June 19, 2024, outside a bar in Destin. At that time, he was found sleeping in a vehicle emitting a strong smell of marijuana. Upon arresting him on a state warrant, investigators discovered he had discarded a bag of fentanyl powder near his vehicle just before being searched.
U.S. Attorney Heekin stated: “This defendant has flooded our communities with deadly poison that inflicted untold harm and destruction, but thanks to the incredible work of the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office he will spend his days in a federal prison cell.” He emphasized collaboration with state law enforcement partners to prosecute those trafficking dangerous drugs.
Sheriff Eric Aden from the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office commented: “Fentanyl and methamphetamine are poisoning our communities at an alarming rate. This case however is a great example of how teamwork between local and federal agencies can help get dangerous individuals and the poison they peddle off our streets.”
Deanne L. Reuter, DEA Miami Field Division Special Agent in Charge said: “People who peddle these deadly substances have zero regard for other lives… They profit on suffering, and our agents will not stop until these traffickers are brought to justice.”
The investigation involved collaboration between the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Assistant United States Attorney Walter Narramore prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America—a nationwide initiative utilizing resources from the Department of Justice to combat illegal immigration and eliminate cartels as well as transnational criminal organizations.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida operates under the direction of the Attorney General as one among 94 offices serving as principal litigators across the nation.
