A McMinnville man was nabbed in an undercover sting where he allegedly sold fentanyl, a potentially deadly substance which he originally attempted to pass off as a less deadly substance.

Michael Chance Morris, 24, has been charged with possession with intent to distribute. He was arrested April 12 during an undercover drug buy coordinated by Warren County Sheriff’s investigator Steven Carpenter and McMinnville Police detective Eddie Colwell.

“We arranged a drug buy from Morris,” said Colwell. “It was supposed to be for heroin. We confiscated a white powder believed to be fentanyl.”

Fentanyl, heroin’s synthetic cousin, is much stronger than heroin. Depending on a person’s body size, tolerance and past usage, a lethal dose of heroin is approximately 30 milligrams and a lethal dose of fentanyl can be as little as 2 milligrams.

“We confiscated half a gram of fentanyl during the drug buy,” said Colwell.  

Half a gram equals 500 milligrams – potentially enough to kill 250 users. 

At the time of this arrest, Morris was out on bond awaiting resolution of charges levied against him on Aug. 30, 2021. He was charged with three counts of possession of a schedule II drug for resale. 

“Those were heroin and fentanyl charges,” said Cowell.

A bond of $50,000 was placed on Morris for the August charges. That amount was doubled for this latest arrest. Bond was set at $100,000.