A Needles man who entered a mandatory prison plea agreement resolving one criminal case faces scores more years in prison in four other cases still pending in Mohave County Superior Court. Matthew Solari, 31, is the latest of eight defendants to plead guilty for their involvement in a Bullhead City-based opioid ring.
That case is being resolved with the guilty pleas Solari entered April 8 for possession of a narcotic drug and attempted forgery. The Arizona Attorney General’s office said Solari engaged in fraudulent use of a false prescription to illegally obtain drugs from a grocery store pharmacy in Lake Havasu City in 2016.
Terms of the plea agreement require Judge Billy Sipe to order a 2.5-year prison term at a May 8 sentencing hearing.
Defense attorney Christopher Donnis informed the Court that Solari was rejecting a plea offer involving drug, weapon and prison contraband charges in four pending cases. It was revealed that Solari would get another prison sentence between five and twenty years under the offer.
At the same time, Judge Sipe informed Solari that he is looking at 54-170 years in prison if convicted of all counts at trial. Attorneys will advise of the status of the pending cases when Solari is sentenced next month.
