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A decade ago, Antonella Barba sang three songs before she was eliminated from “American Idol.” But even then, she still had dreams.
Barba, 32, seemed on the verge of a successful singing career, even as she initially ran into some hot water when some provocative photos of her surfaced online.
Barba released the single “Jersey Girl” and identified herself as a singer, violinist and pianist on her Instagram page and sang the National Anthem before a Los Angeles Dodgers baseball game. She sang with other “American Idol” alums on Jimmy Kimmel’s TV show (see videos below).
She got to meet and befriend famous people, having her picture taken with the likes of Al Pacino and Magic Johnson.
“Told Magic in April when I sang at the game that I’d see him at the playoffs and now we’re at the playoffs,” she wrote in one Twitter post two years ago.
Now, even as the Point Pleasant Boro resident still has an official website that says “Coming Soon,” it appears that Barba’s dreams have come and gone.
Barba pleaded guilty on Tuesday to possessing with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office release.
That’s enough of the drug, many more times powerful than heroin, to kill 200,000 people.
Barba faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison when sentenced on November 21. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties (story continues below tweet)
According to court documents, Barba was parked in downtown Norfolk, Va. at approximately 11:05 p.m. in October 2018, when she was approached by law enforcement. A dog handler screened Barba’s rental vehicle with a drug dog, which alerted on the vehicle, according to the release.
The canine officer searched Barba’s rental vehicle and discovered a closed shoebox in plain view on the front passenger floorboard. The officer opened the shoebox and discovered a plastic bag containing a large quantity of a white, rock-like substance, according to the release.
Barba subsequently admitted she had landed at Washington-Dulles at 4 p.m. on a flight from Los Angeles and that she rented a car there and drove to Norfolk, according to the release.
The substance seized from Barba’s rental car was submitted to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Savannah Laboratory for forensic analysis, and a forensic scientist determined the substance to be fentanyl – a Schedule II controlled substance – with a total weight of 830.9 grams.
A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
A year ago, Barba told a different story.
Eric Korslund, a Virginia-based criminal defense attorney, once told Patch that Barba ran into trouble with police while she was on her cell phone sitting in the driver’s seat of a rented vehicle in downtown Norfolk, Va.
A police officer asked for her identification and soon let her go, but another police officer then pulled her over with a police dog and searched the vehicle, he said. He found drugs, Korslund said, but Barba denies knowing they were there.
“She was very cooperative with police. She gave them full identification,” Korslund said.
As for her state-of-mind, Korslund said, “She’s been doing very well considering the circumstances.”
Now, a decade after near-stardom, Barba has stopped denying.
