ANNANDALE, VA — A federal grand jury has indicted a man on six drug charges stemming from a Fairfax County investigation that authorities say included multiple fentanyl sales at an Annandale apartment complex and the seizure of methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl pills, a gun and $25,000 in cash.
Teaon Teavaria Dennis was indicted Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The indictment charges him with conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute and attempted possession with intent to distribute, and four counts of distributing fentanyl.
The conspiracy charge alleges Dennis worked with Calvin Ray Brown and others from at least January 2021 through April 21, 2022, to distribute or possess with intent to distribute at least 40 grams of fentanyl, 500 grams of methamphetamine and 500 grams of cocaine.
Dennis remains in federal custody after a magistrate judge denied his request for release during a July 21 detention hearing. The court also found probable cause to continue the case to a grand jury, court records show.
The charges grew out of an investigation begun by the Fairfax County Police Department's Organized Crime and Narcotics Unit in February 2022. The Drug Enforcement Administration joined the investigation two months later, according to an affidavit filed in federal court.
Investigators used a cooperating source who told police that Brown supplied counterfeit pressed pills containing fentanyl and introduced Dennis as his partner, according to the affidavit.
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On March 4, 2022, investigators directed the source to buy 15 pressed pills from Brown for $360 at an apartment complex on Commons Drive in Annandale. Laboratory testing later confirmed the pills contained fentanyl.
Later that month, a Fairfax County narcotics detective contacted Brown seeking to buy pills. Brown provided a phone number that investigators said belonged to Dennis.
According to the affidavit, Dennis arranged to sell the detective 30 pressed pills for $430 on March 23 at 4719 Commons Drive. The transaction occurred in a stairwell, and laboratory testing confirmed the pills contained fentanyl.
Investigators said the detective made two more purchases from Dennis on April 6 and April 13, buying 50 pills for $700 each time. Both transactions took place in the stairwell at 4711 Commons Drive, according to court documents.
The 100 pills purchased during those transactions also tested positive for fentanyl.
On April 21, investigators obtained a warrant to search Brown's residence at 4711 Commons Drive, Apartment 303. A property manager confirmed Brown was listed on the lease, according to the affidavit.
That same day, investigators arranged another purchase from Dennis — 50 pills for $700 — at the Commons Drive property.
After that transaction, Brown was taken into custody, and investigators searched his apartment.
Authorities reported finding a semiautomatic handgun without a serial number, about 1.5 pounds of a white crystalline substance, more than 3 pounds of an off-white substance, nearly 1,000 pressed pills, smaller bags of suspected narcotics and $25,000 in cash.
Laboratory testing determined the seized substances included approximately 723 grams of methamphetamine, more than 500 grams of cocaine and 108 grams of fentanyl in pill form, according to the affidavit. Investigators also seized 665 grams of N,N-dimethylpentylone, a synthetic drug similar to and sometimes marketed as MDMA.
After his arrest, Brown told Fairfax County detectives that the narcotics in the apartment belonged to him and identified Dennis as his co-conspirator, according to the affidavit.
The new indictment charges Dennis with four separate fentanyl distributions on March 23, April 6, April 13 and April 21, 2022. It also includes a forfeiture notice seeking property or proceeds connected to the offenses if Dennis is convicted.
An indictment is an allegation of criminal conduct and does not constitute evidence of guilt. Dennis is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
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