Bucks Co. Meth And Fentanyl Trafficker Sentenced To 31 Years

DOYLESTOWN, PA — A 47-year-old Quakertown man was sentenced Monday to 15 to 31 years in state prison on multiple felony drug trafficking charges.

In October, Brendan Craig Hamrick entered an open guilty plea to nine counts each of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of drug paraphernalia. He also entered a plea to two counts of criminal use of a communication facility.

The sentence by Common Pleas Judge Stephen A. Corr marks the conclusion of a significant narcotics investigation led by Bucks County Detectives Drug Strike Force and the Warrington Township Police Department.

Hamrick’s conviction stems from bulk methamphetamine and fentanyl sales facilitated through his cellphone, prosecutors said. In two controlled purchases in March 2022, Hamrick sold more than 130 grams of methamphetamine and 58 pressed fentanyl pills.

The investigation reached a turning point in May 2022 when Hamrick was apprehended during a vehicle stop. A search of the vehicle led to the recovery of 200 grams of crystal methamphetamine, along with cocaine base and distribution-level amounts of LSD, marijuana, and MDMA.

Additional evidence recovered from the vehicle included a digital scale with residue, numerous packaging baggies, and a cellphone used to coordinate his illegal operations, said prosecutors.

During the sentencing hearing, Deputy District Attorney Thomas Gannon presented evidence from a consensual recording in which Hamrick is heard encouraging a cooperating individual to drug a supplier with GHB, which he described as the "date rape drug."

Hamrick claimed on the recording that he possessed the knowledge to dose an individual based on their body weight to keep them incapacitated for four to five hours.

Gannon crossed the defendant on the recordings, as well as his extensive criminal history and his failure to commit to drug treatment. "This sentence reflects the severity of Hamrick’s actions and the danger his trafficking posed to the community," he said.

The Bucks County Detectives Drug Strike Force and the Warrington Township Police Department were assisted in the investigation by the Quakertown Borough Police Department.