A Fairfield man was sentenced Monday to more than 16 years in prison on drug charges in federal court. Prosecutors said he used a luxury apartment across from The Banks, a popular downtown entertainment district, as a narcotics stash house.

A federal court judge in Cincinnati also sentenced Eric Clark, 42, to 20 years of probation. He was convicted of participating in a narcotics conspiracy involving at least 11 kilograms of narcotics at a trial in February.

Federal prosecutors said Clark trafficked cocaine and fentanyl and had criminal contacts in the Los Angeles area. He used a luxury apartment on East Freedom Way as a hideout.

According to court documents, in May 2021, the DEA learned of the matter when Clark corresponded with a confidential DEA source, who was interested in purchasing 10 kilograms of cocaine for $33,000 per kilogram.

Federal agents in Cincinnati acting undercover contacted Clark, who told the source he wanted to obtain a shipment of fentanyl he called “China.”

Clark had multiple interactions with undercover agents before he was arrested in late August, corresponding over FaceTime, meeting at a mall, local bars and other locations, court documents show.

In August 2021, officers executed search warrants at the downtown apartment and his home on Circle Drive in Fairfield.

In the apartment, agents found more than 3 kilograms of fentanyl and 3 kilograms of cocaine, according to prosecutors. At Fairfield’s home, they found two guns and more than $15,000 in cash.

Clark had 5 kilograms of fentanyl and cocaine and more than $204,000 in cash in his car at the time of his arrest in August 2021, prosecutors said.

Clark was already on probation for a previous federal drug charge when he was arrested. He was previously sentenced to 15 years in prison for attempting to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.

This article originally appeared in the Cincinnati Enquirer: Fairfied man sentenced to 16 years for fentanyl and cocaine conspiracy