Port Jervis Parolee Pleads Guilty To Drug Charge Following Fentanyl Bust: DA

PORT JERVIS, NY — A resident on parole following a robbery conviction has pleaded guilty to a drug charge after officers found more than 100 glassines of fentanyl in his home.

Ashante Coston, 30, of Port Jervis, entered a guilty plea April 22 in Orange County Court to one count of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s office.

District Attorney David M. Hoovler said fentanyl poses a “real and present danger” to communities.

“Law enforcement will continue to identify those responsible for distributing this poison, and we will continue to seek lengthy prison sentences to help make our streets safer,” Hoovler said.

Under the terms of a plea agreement, Coston is expected to be sentenced on July 7 to six years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

On Oct. 24, 2024, parole officers visited Coston’s residence, as he was on parole at the time for a 2019 robbery conviction, prosecutors said. During this visit, they found multiple glassine envelopes containing powdery substances, so they contacted local police.

The Port Jervis Police Department arrived and recovered 111 glassines containing a substance which tested positive for fentanyl, as well as numerous other empty glassine envelopes used to package narcotics, according to the district attorney’s office.

Coston admitted to police he was selling fentanyl, and during his plea proceeding, he admitted to possessing fentanyl with the intent to sell it, prosecutors said.

“While drug dealers look for easy profit on the backs of those addicted by these terrible substances, we collectively suffer by its persistent spread,” Hoovler said.