Drug trafficker, Thea Psathas, 47, of Port Charlotte, was adjudicated guilty and sentenced to 15 years in prison followed by 20 years of probation, for two drug trafficking cases. She also
was given a $100,000 fine in each case, so she must pay $200,000 as part of her sentence.
The defendant did an open plea to the court. This is not a plea agreement. Defendants can choose not to have a jury trial and plea straight to the court for sentencing.
On October 11, 2018, Psathas sold drugs to a Confidential Informant in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Charlotte County. She allowed the informant into her car and sold them 27 grams of methamphetamine. She then sold three grams of methamphetamine to an undercover officer with the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office. The transactions were caught on video surveillance as part of an undercover drug operation.
Four days later, during the same drug operation, the defendant made the same sales to an undercover officer and Confidential Informant. In each case, the defendant was charged with Trafficking by Possession in Amphetamines 28 grams or More, Sale or Delivery of a Controlled Substance, and Transportation of Drug Paraphernalia.
The defendant was arrested a short while later when she tried to steal 14 dollars in items from a Wal-Mart in Lee County. She had narcotics in her purse when she was searched. She was sentenced in that case in October 2019.
Assistant State Attorney Scott Patterson and Assistant State Attorney Nolan Deming prosecuted the case.
Samantha Syoen – Communications Director, State Attorney’s Office