Costa Mesa drug dealer sentenced for selling Fentanyl that killed an O.C. woman

Matthew Benjamin Hurley, a Virginia man, was sentenced Monday to 14 years in federal prison after he admitted to selling a bag of fentanyl out of a Costa Mesa motel, which later caused the fatal overdose of Rose Avelar, a 22-year-old woman.

Avelar overdosed on the Fentanyl in August of 2020, in Huntington Beach.

Hurley accepted a plea deal last year, admitting to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl resulting in a death.

Hurley told the court that his own addiction to drugs was to blame and that he held himself accountable for Avelar’s death.

Avelar’s family told the court ath she was a “beautiful, driven young woman” who was excited at her new apartment and upcoming college classes. They traveled from Massachusetts to speak up for Avelar.

Luis Avelar, Rose’s father, mentioned that Hurley continued to sell fentanyl even after learning of Rose Avelar’s overdose death.

Samuel Cross, Hurley’s defense attorney, tried to argue for a shorter 10-year sentence. His argument was that Velar bought Fentanyl from Hurley, not a different drug that had unknowingly included Fentanyl.

Cross also argued that Velar would have just bought the drugs from another dealer had Hurley not sold her the Fentanyl.

The Judge did not buy that argument asking that would a crime be less serious because there were multiple offenders?

“I have trouble with that argument,” the judge said. “If there are multiple offenders out there does it make the crime less serious?”

While the Judge cited that Hurley had a difficult childhood that led to drug addiction and dealing, the devastating impact of Avelar’s death on her family led to the 14-year sentence to Federal prison.

There were a half-dozen alleged drug dealers who were federally charged in April 2022, including Hurley, after the OCDA alleged that they sold fentanyl-laced narcotics that resulted in 10 deaths in Orange County.

All these alleged dealers were indicted for distribution of fentanyl resulting in death. These convictions usually lead to mandatory minimum sentences of 20 years in federal prison, and a potential sentence of life without parole.