A Kansas woman will spend 12 years in federal prison for selling heroin laced with fentanyl while ignoring overdoses among buyers.

According to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister, 37-year-old Amber L. Juarez of Leavenworth pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl.  Juarez sold heroin on three separate occasions to a confidential informant. The heroin from two of the three purchases was mixed with fentanyl.

The investigation revealed Juarez sold more than a kilogram of heroin over the course of approximately five months.

At a sentencing hearing Monday, prosecutors argued that Juarez knew buyers were overdosing but continued to sell heroin.

McAllister commended the Leavenworth Police Department, the Leavenworth County Sheriff’s Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Zabel for their work on the case.