Drug dealer pleads guilty in deadly heroin case

A Columbia man pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday to distributing heroin, which led to the death of another man last year.

Ellison Lee Hutchinson, 37, will serve 22 years in prison without the possibility of parole and is subject to a fine of $1 million.

Hutchinson, also known as “Lucky,” admitted that he gave heroin to Maximillion Shackelford in January 2012. The heroin resulted in Shackelford’s death.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, Columbia police were called to Shackelford’s apartment on January 23 and found Shackelford dead. Police found drug paraphernalia in the apartment and the medical examiner ruled that the cause of death was a heroin overdose.

Investigators found phone records between Shackelford and Hutchinson that indicated there was a drug deal. A later search of Hutchinson’s residence found money, drugs and other drug paraphernalia.