The Chattanooga woman who allegedly sold the fentanyl that killed Andrey V. Tkachenko in 2017 is set to go to trial later this year. Fontella Woods, 54, has been charged with second-degree murder and had her trial date set for Aug. 18.
Tkachenko overdosed on fentanyl in 2017, and his body was found at an East Ridge gas station. Ms. Woods was not formally indicted by the grand jury until March 2019.
When Judge Tom Greenholtz asked about the prudence of setting a trial date if the state was still negotiating a plea agreement with the defense, prosecutor Colin Campbell said that it appeared unlikely an agreement would be made.
However, he also said, “I don’t see a problem with keeping them open” when asked by Judge Greenholtz about the possibility of a late agreement being made, even though a trial date has been set.
Prosecutor Campbell did say, “I think we intend to try the case.”