Schuylkill County Man Charged With Selling Fentanyl to Undercover Officer Outside Pottsville Home

A Schuylkill County man is charged with selling fentanyl to an undercover officer outside a Pottsville home where authorities seized large quantities of drugs last month.

Nathan Sites, 44, of Pottsville, was charged Oct. 22 by the Schuylkill County District Attorney’s Drug Task Force in connection with a sale that investigators say happened July 22 outside 409 E. Norwegian St.

That is the home of Ashley Licona, 34, who was arrested Sept. 29 when the task force, the State Police Troop L Vice/Narcotics Unit, and Pottsville Police served a search warrant there.

According to investigators, an undercover officer contacted Licona by text message and phone calls in July, and she agreed to sell the officer suspected heroin or fentanyl along with methamphetamine. She agreed to make the deal near her home.

The officer parked on E. Norwegian St. in an undercover vehicle shortly before 3 p.m. that day. A few minutes later, Licona texted the officer that she was sending someone out to deliver the fentanyl, investigators say. She then called and told the officer she was unable to sell methamphetamine but could still provide fentanyl.

Shortly afterward, a man later identified as Sites walked out the front door of the home, went to the passenger side of the officer’s vehicle, and handed over two glassine baggies of suspected fentanyl, according to investigators. The officer paid Sites with money provided for the buy, and Sites went back into the building.

Testing at the State Police crime lab in Harrisburg found the substance weighed 0.23 grams and contained heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, xylazine, ketamine, and tramadol, investigators say.

Sites faces two counts each of possession with intent to deliver and conspiracy to commit possession with intent to deliver, along with possession of a controlled substance and conspiracy to commit possession of a controlled substance.

He was arraigned Saturday and remains in Schuylkill County Prison, unable to post $50,000 bail. The court also issued a Nebbia order, which requires that the source of any money used to post his bail be verified.

Sites is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Nov. 2 before Magisterial District Judge James Reiley.

The alleged sale came about two months before the search at the E. Norwegian St. home. During that search, authorities say they seized 454 grams of methamphetamine, with an estimated street value of $22,700, and 25 grams of fentanyl, valued at an estimated $12,500. Authorities said at the time that the investigation into the home and Licona began over the summer.

Licona was charged with two counts each of possession with intent to deliver and possession of a controlled substance, plus possession of drug paraphernalia.

She waived her right to a preliminary hearing Oct. 19 before Reiley, sending all charges against her to Schuylkill County Court. She remains in Schuylkill County Prison on $100,000 bail.

RELATED: Large Quantities of Fentanyl, Meth Seized During Search of Schuylkill County Home

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