A Burtonsville woman has been sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison after admitting to distributing fentanyl that resulted in a person’s death.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, Sarah Katherine Magid, 36, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis to 151 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to conspiring to distribute fentanyl. The judge also ordered Magid to pay $25,090 in restitution to cover the victim’s burial expenses.
Court documents state that in March 2024, Magid sold fentanyl to a victim after arranging the transaction through text messages. Investigators recovered messages from the victim’s cellphone detailing the drug sale and a subsequent meeting between the two.
According to prosecutors, the pills involved in the transaction were pressed to resemble oxycodone hydrochloride but actually contained fentanyl. The victim was later found dead, and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of the District of Columbia determined the cause of death was fentanyl toxicity.
The investigation also revealed additional allegations involving Magid’s employment. According to court documents, in July 2024, a complainant reported that Magid, who worked as a first-grade teacher in Montgomery County, would leave her classroom to sell drugs to people outside the school. Investigators later identified text messages from Magid’s phone that, according to prosecutors, indicated she sold drugs during work hours. FOX 5 reports Magid worked at Charles Drew ES in Silver Spring.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Washington Division and the Montgomery County Police Department. Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentence alongside DEA Special Agent in Charge Christopher C. Goumenis and MCPD Chief Marc R. Yamada. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Megan S. McKoy and Elizabeth Wright prosecuted the case.
