Valley Woman Sentenced In Landmark Fentanyl Murder Case

RESEDA, CA — A 40-year-old woman from Reseda was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years to life in state prison for what District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said was Ventura County's first fentanyl murder conviction.

Charity Faith Wiley pleaded guilty on July 6 to the second-degree murder in connection with the death of Devin Kastler, who overdosed on a deadly mixture of fentanyl and xylazine, according to the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.

Wiley also pleaded guilty to five additional felonies related to her drug possession, sales activity, gun possession and money laundering, prosecutors said. She also admitted several special allegations and aggravating factors, including that the manner in which the crimes were carried out indicated planning, sophistication, or professionalism.

"This is the first fentanyl murder conviction in Ventura County, making an important step to holding drug dealers accountable when their actions result in the loss of life," District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said.

Devin's relatives and friends provided emotional statements in Tuesday's sentencing, describing his life and the devastating effects due to his death.

"When my child Devin died, my life did not simply change. The life I knew ended as well. There is a version of me who existed before and now a version of the person I have had to become," Devin's mother, Kristi Kastler, told the court.

Kastler added that Wiley knew that the drugs she gave Devin were dirty and that she didn't just sell Devin drugs — she sold him something that would end his life.

The Ventura County Fentanyl and Overdose Crime Unit responded to Devin's residence June 6, 2024, in an unincorporated area bordering Simi Valley to reports of an apparent overdose, where investigators discovered drugs and paraphernalia in his room, prosecutors said.

Toxicology reports indicated that a lethal amount of fentanyl and the veterinary sedative xylazine, known by its street name tranq and used as a cutting agent for heroin and fentanyl, were found in his system. Further investigation linked Wiley as the source of the drug, who was later taken into custody on March 5, 2025, at her home in Reseda.

During the investigation, Simi Valley Police Department and VC FOCUS investigators searched Wiley's home and a separate apartment used for her narcotics sales operation, where they located more than 3 pounds of fentanyl, 1.5 pounds of methamphetamine, 2.6 pounds of counterfeit Xanax pills suspected to contain fentanyl, pre-packaged fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin, prosecutors said.

Investigators also recovered more than $96,000 in cash and three firearms, two of which were located, along with multiple cellphones, stolen and fraudulent identification, and extensive evidence of narcotic sales, including a drug sales business plane, hundreds of pay-owe sheets, a money counter, and drug packaging paraphernalia.

Prosecutors said that the firearms were located in Wiley's bedroom and that further investigation determined that she had taken the weapons in exchange for drugs.

City News Service