A Jamestown man is facing federal drug charges.

U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced Wednesday that Russell Sims, 32, of Jamestown, was charged by criminal complaint with possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $1,000,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Katerina F. Powers and Joshau A. Violanti, who are handling the case, stated that in the early morning hours of July 20, a Jamestown Police officer conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle in the vicinity of East 6th Street. Sims was a passenger in the vehicle. After noticing that Sims was agitated, the officer ordered him and the driver out of the vehicle. Sims and the driver were interviewed separately, giving inconsistent details. A search of the vehicle recovered a quantity of cocaine and fentanyl, drug paraphernalia, and four cell phones. Fentanyl was also located on Sims’s person.

The complaint is the result of an investigation by the Jamestown Police Department, under the direction of Chief Timothy Jackson, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan, and the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff James Quattrone.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.