A man charged with manslaughter in a Colorado fentanyl death was arrested earlier this month in South America after fleeing the country in January, days before his jury trial was scheduled to begin, according to law enforcement.
Max Arsenault, 33, was arrested in Medellín, Colombia, on March 4 and extradited to Colorado, . As of Wednesday, the man was in custody and awaiting trial at the Arapahoe County Detention Center, .
Arapahoe County deputies responded to a medical call in the 21000 block of East Otero Parkway on May 7, 2023, . When they arrived, deputies found an unresponsive Nicholas Dorotik, 47, who died from a mixed-drug overdose at the scene, sheriff’s officials said.
Dorotik had fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system, including three times the amount of fentanyl that can cause a fatal overdose, according to the sheriff’s office.
Arsenault and Julia Weishaar were arrested and charged in August 2024 with manslaughter and 10 felony drug charges in Dorotik’s death, including distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death and conspiracy to distribute, according to Arapahoe County court records.
Weishaar took a deal and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl resulting in death, a class one drug felony, in October 2025, court records show. The deal dismissed all other charges, including manslaughter, and she was sentenced to 10 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections.
Arsenault fled the country on Jan. 17 while out on bail and failed to appear for his pre-trial readiness conference on Jan. 20, according to court records. His jury trial was scheduled to begin on Jan. 27.
As of Wednesday, a new jury trial had been scheduled for September, court records show, though additional charges may be added to Arsenault’s case. The man is now under investigation for four felony charges related to fleeing the country: two counts each of failure to appear and fugitive of justice, according to inmate records.
“This arrest sends a clear message: our agency is committed to holding those accountable in fentanyl-related deaths to protect our community from this deadly substance,” Arapahoe County Sheriff Tyler Brown .
