LEXINGTON, Ky. — A Huntington, W.Va., man has entered a guilty plea to a federal drug charge, after he was caught bringing a shipment of fentanyl to Pike County.

Donte Hendricks, 30, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Lexington federal court to one count of possession of more than 40 grams of fentanyl with the intent to distribute.

The case arose out of a traffic stop last year. Pikeville Police had received a tip that Hendricks would be bringing a large amount of fentanyl to the area. The tip included a description of the man and his car, so police were able to locate him and pull him over on Ratliff’s Creek Road on Feb. 26, 2025.

After he was stopped, Pikeville Police asked the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office to bring in a K-9 to sniff around the car. That resulted in the seizure of 103.6 grams of fentanyl and $917 in cash.

Hendricks had asked that the evidence from the stop should be tossed out, arguing that police did not have reasonable suspicion to stop him or to extend the traffic stop to allow the drug dog to be brought to the scene.

The court ruled against that request in December, but Hendricks’ plea agreement leaves open the door for him to appeal that denial. If an appeals court agrees to suppress the evidence, he will be allowed to withdraw his plea.

Hendricks will be sentenced Aug. 6 in Lexington, when he will face 5-to-40 years in prison.