Dealer admits selling fentanyl disguised as cocaine to woman who died of overdose

A New Jersey drug dealer admitted he sold fentanyl disguised as cocaine to a 21-year-old woman, causing her to overdose and die in Hunterdon County nearly two years ago, authorities said.

Leonard R. Contreras, 26, pleaded guilty Friday to first-degree strict liability for a drug-induced death, the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office said.

The woman, a West Virginia resident, and her boyfriend believed they were purchasing cocaine from Contreras before her death in Raritan Township on Oct. 31, 2022.

Prosecutors will ask that Contreras, of the Hopelawn section of Woodbridge, be sentenced to 10 years in prison. He will be sentenced on November 18.