Cottonwood Heights man pleads not guilty to making pills


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SALT LAKE CITY — A Cottonwood Heights man accused of making tens of thousands of painkillers and anti-anxiety pills in his home pleaded not guilty Wednesday in federal court.

Aaron Shamo, 26, is charged with one count of possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute. He appeared at a brief hearing wearing a blue jail jumpsuit and handcuffs. He is being held in custody pending trial.

Prosecutors said they found 70,000 pills at his house that were made to look like oxycodone but actually contained fentanyl. Authorities also say agents discovered 25,000 Xanax pills, an anti-anxiety drug, and seized $1.2 million in cash and several vehicles from the home.

Shamo was the only one at the house, and two pill-manufacturing machines were running when agents arrived to search it, prosecutors say.

Magistrate Judge Evelyn Furse scheduled trial for February. If convicted, Shamo faces up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

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Dennis Romboy

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