Franklin resident sentenced to up to 30 years in prison for charges of selling fentanyl

FRANKLIN — Michael Brownell, of Franklin, was sentenced to up to 30 years in prison on charges of selling drugs and felony firearm possession, in Merrimack County Superior Court, according to a media release from Attorney General John Formella on Friday.

Brownell was also sentenced for violating the terms of his probation in another case.

After Brownell pleaded guilty, the court sentenced him to serve 15 to 30 years in state prison on five controlled drug sale charges, which was a subsequent offense, with three years of the minimum sentence suspended upon successfully finishing certain programming while incarcerated. The sentence on each of the five charges will run concurrently. On two charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm, Brownell was sentenced to 3.5 to seven years in state prison, all of which is suspended for 10 years.

In a separate case, Brownell admitted he violated the terms of his probation, and the court imposed a previously-suspended sentence of six to 12 years in state prison. That sentence will run concurrently with the new sentences, according to the release.

The evidence established that between December 2024 and January 2025, Brownell made five sales of fentanyl to a confidential informant, totaling approximately 475 grams. When he was arrested, officers found Brownell had two firearms, despite having been previously convicted of a felony.

The case was investigated by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office and the New Hampshire State Police Narcotics Investigation Unit.