‘Treasure map’ to buried fentanyl leads to Isle of Wight man’s conviction, officials say

An Isle of Wight man pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess fentanyl after officials say he gave a “treasure map” of his stash to a friend.

Ronald Devon Matthews, 39, was in prison for unrelated gun charges when he drew the map to 383 grams of fentanyl buried on his property on the back of an invoice, according to a news release from federal prosecutors. Matthews gave the map to Demetris Alexander Daniels, 34, of Hampton — who was then living on Matthews’s property — so Daniels could sell the fentanyl once found. In May or June 2023, prosecutors said Daniels unsuccessfully tried to find the fentanyl by digging in the yard. On June 15, 2023, an unnamed witness reached out to Daniels by phone and agreed to meet on June 18, 2023, to look for the fentanyl.

The next day, law enforcement officers with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives searched the property and found the map. Officers used the map to recover a container of fentanyl.

Matthews pled guilty on Sept. 30, and he is facing up to 40 years in prison. Daniels pled guilty Oct. 7 to being an accessory after the fact to maintaining a drug-involved premises.

Eliza Noe, eliza.noe@virginiamedia.com