Antonella Barba, a former contestant on the American reality television series American Idol and Fear Factor, was arrested by police in Norfolk, Virginia after she was found trying to deliver nearly two pounds of fentanyl.
According to recently unsealed court records, Barba was arrested in Norfolk, Virginia, on October 11, 2018. The court records indicate that at around 11:30 a.m., Barba was behind the wheel of a car when she was approached by a police officer who asked for her identification.
While Barba was allowed to leave by the first police officer, she was later pulled over by a second police officer who ordered a search of her car. Upon searching Barba’s vehicle with a K-9 dog, 830 grams of fentanyl were found inside the vehicle.
Following her arrest, Barba was charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl, which is a federal indictment.
Prior to her October 11 arrest, Barba was already facing between five and 40 years in prison due to a pending charge of distributing heroin with an intent to sell. At the time of her Norfolk arrest, Barba was out on $50,000 bond.
At this time, she is scheduled to appear in court for a detention hearing on Thursday, February 13.
Fentanyl, a highly addictive synthetic opioid, is a drug that is used for pain management and is 100 times stronger than morphine.
Barba was previously best known for appearing in the 2007 season of American Idol, an episode of Fear Factor, and the 2017 movie All About the Money.
She also made an appearance on late night show Jimmy Kimmel Live when host Jimmy Kimmel brought Barba and other former American Idol contestants onto the show for a “Where Are They Now?” segment.
That is all the information that is available at this time. This article will be updated with new and relevant information should it become available. If there is anything that we missed, please reach out to editor@teamcoed.com.