Clayton Faubion

Convicted and sentenced. Clayton Faubion, 37, was sentenced on November 9, 2026 to 157 months in federal prison for distributing the fentanyl-laced substance that killed S.K., an active-duty Navy sailor who had just reported to Gulfport, Mississippi. Two co-defendants, Michael Nix and Augustina Dahilig, were sentenced alongside him in the same case.

Introduction

Clayton Faubion is a 37-year-old Gulfport, Mississippi man sentenced to 157 months — more than 13 years — in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release and a $12,000 fine, for his role in distributing the fentanyl that killed a U.S. Navy sailor. The sentence, imposed on November 9, 2026, was announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office together with two co-defendants: Michael Nix, 43, sentenced November 12, 2026 to 84 months plus five years of supervised release, and Augustina Dahilig, 36, sentenced the same day to 14 months plus one year of supervised release. The victim, identified in court documents as S.K., was an active-duty sailor who died of acute fentanyl intoxication days after the trio sourced and supplied him the drug in April 2022.

Background Information

According to court documents, on April 15, 2022, Nix, Faubion and Dahilig met victim S.K., an active-duty Navy sailor, and two fellow service members at a local bar in Gulfport. During the evening, prosecutors said Faubion, Nix and Dahilig left the venue so Faubion and Nix could source a controlled substance for S.K. from a drug dealer known to Nix. The trio then returned to the bar, where Faubion provided the substance to S.K. and one of his fellow sailors. A federal grand jury charged all three defendants in a two-count indictment filed on July 29, 2025.

The drug proved fatal. Within minutes of ingesting the substance, investigators said, S.K. became unconscious and began snoring. Faubion and Dahilig drove the unconscious sailor to their apartment complex while the two other service members followed in a separate vehicle; S.K. remained unconscious inside Faubion’s vehicle in the parking lot until the other two sailors moved him to their own car and transported him to the hospital. By the time S.K. arrived at the emergency room, prosecutors said he did not have a pulse.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

The conduct that brought the three defendants before a federal judge began as a night out that turned into a drug run. Faubion handed the sourced substance directly to S.K. and another sailor at the bar; within minutes S.K. was unconscious. Rather than calling for help, Faubion and Dahilig drove the unresponsive sailor to their apartment complex and left him unconscious in Faubion’s vehicle in the parking lot — it was the two other service members who ultimately moved S.K. and rushed him to the emergency room, where he arrived without a pulse. S.K. was declared brain dead on April 21, 2022, six days after the night at the bar, and was subsequently removed from life support. While a toxicology report indicated the presence of cocaine, methamphetamine, nicotine, fentanyl and alcohol, an expert medical toxicologist concluded after reviewing S.K.’s medical records, bar surveillance footage and investigative files that his death was caused specifically by acute fentanyl intoxication. The investigation confirmed that the controlled substance, which was sourced and supplied by Nix and Faubion, contained the lethal fentanyl.

Public Reaction and Consequences

DEA Special Agent in Charge John P. Scott said of the case: “This young sailor had just stepped up to serve our country and reported to Gulfport, only to have his future cut short by the ruthless distribution of poison in our community. Fentanyl destroys lives without a second thought, and those who push this deadly substance will find no refuge from federal justice. We will remain relentless alongside our local and military partners to hunt down these offenders and hold them fully accountable for the destruction they leave behind.” The sentences spread across the three defendants according to their roles: Faubion, who provided the substance and left the unconscious sailor in his car, received 157 months, a $12,000 fine and five years of supervised release; Nix, the source of the dealer connection, received 84 months; Dahilig, who drove the unconscious sailor from the bar, received 14 months.

Current Status

Faubion, 37, began serving his 157-month sentence after the November 9, 2026 imposition, followed by five years of supervised release. Nix, 43, was sentenced on November 12, 2026 to 84 months in federal prison plus five years of supervised release; Dahilig, 36, was sentenced the same day to 14 months plus one year of supervised release. All three were charged in the July 29, 2025 two-count indictment and resolved their cases with pleas, closing the prosecution of the Gulfport sailor’s death more than four years after it happened.

Impact on Their Career/Life

Faubion’s role — sourcing the fatal dose through Nix’s dealer contact, handing it to the sailor at the bar, then parking the dying man outside his own apartment — put the longest sentence of the three on him: more than 13 years, a five-figure fine, and half a decade of supervised release after prison. The case stands as the federal response to a death that began with a casual offer at a bar and ended with a 22-year-old sailor brain dead within six days. Dahilig’s 14-month term and Nix’s 84 months complete the account: every participant in the supply chain that delivered the fentanyl received a federal felony conviction and prison time.

Sources

• WJTV, “Three sentenced in Navy sailor’s fatal fentanyl overdose,” November 13, 2026 — source