Barboursville Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Distributing Heroin

HUNTINGTON, WV—A Barboursville man who admitted he distributed heroin was sentenced in federal court today, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced. DeMarco D. Calvin, 31, of Barboursville, West Virginia, previously pleaded guilty in December 2013 to heroin distribution. Calvin admitted that he sold several hundred grams of heroin in the Barboursville area over the past few years. At today’s hearing, Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers sentenced Calvin to 63 months of federal imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release.
This case was investigated by the Huntington Violent Crime/Drug Task Force, which is composed of officers from the FBI, Cabell County Sheriff’s Department, and the Huntington and Barboursville Police Departments. Special Assistant United States Attorney Sharon M. Frazier handled the prosecution.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.

Collin County Man Sentenced in Foreclosure Rescue/Drug Distribution Scheme

SHERMAN, TX—A 34-year-old McKinney, Texas man has been sentenced to federal prison in connection with a combination foreclosure rescue and drug distribution scheme in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.
Jarrod Williams pleaded guilty on August 21, 2013, to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Marcia Crone. Williams was also ordered to pay over $1.4 million in restitution.
According to information presented in court, from February 2007 to June 2012, Jarrod Williams, Julius Williams, and Charles Williams controlled and operated Applied Investment Strategies Inc. (AIS), which marketed itself as a foreclosure rescue service offering assistance to homeowners at risk of foreclosure. However, once a homeowner detained AIS, the defendants fraudulently used the customer’s personal identification information to prepare and send false military orders to banks and lending institutions in order to claim relief from foreclosure under the Servicemember’s Civil Relief Act. AIS would then lease out the home and collect rental payments for AIS’ benefit. The scheme involved approximately 38 homes throughout North Texas and also extended to interfering in the repossession of automobiles. After at least one of the fraudulently acquired properties was vacated, Charles Williams, Christopher Carter, and Sean Harrell turned it into a marijuana grow operation that housed approximately 1,300 marijuana plants that were intended for distribution. A federal grand jury returned an indictment on July 11, 2012, charging the defendants with federal violations.
Charles Williams, 39, of McKinney; Christopher Carter, 34, of Leicester, England; and Sean Harrell, 38, of Dallas, are each currently serving prison sentences ranging from 41 to 50 months. Julius Williams, 43, of McKinney faces up to five years in federal prison at sentencing.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shamoil T. Shipchandler.

Twenty-Eight Members and Associates of Paterson Bloods Street Gang Charged in Manhattan Federal Court with Distributing Heroin, Crack Cocaine, and Powder Cocaine and with Firearms Offenses

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York; Aaron T. Ford, the Special Agent in Charge of the Newark Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); William Fraher, the Acting Chief of Police of the Paterson Police Department, and Gary F. Giardina, the Chief of Police of the Clifton Police Department, today announced the unsealing of a superseding indictment charging 28 members and associates of the Bloods street gang operating in Passaic County, New Jersey, principally in the city of Paterson, with distribution and possession with the intent to distribute heroin, “crack” cocaine, and powder cocaine. The indictment also charges three of the defendants with brandishing firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking activity and with being felons unlawfully in possession of firearms.
Of the 28 defendants named in the superseding indictment, nine were taken into custody in a weekend sweep. Those nine defendants were presented in Manhattan federal court this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Debra Freeman and detained. Five other defendants are presently detained in state custody on unrelated charges and will be writted into federal custody. One defendant, Hakim Lowery, remains at large. The other 13 defendants were arrested on earlier occasions on the underlying indictments, and all remain detained.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said, “Once again we see the convergence of drugs, guns, and violence that plagues neighborhoods, threatens their inhabitants, and spreads potentially lethal narcotics from city to city and across state lines. To keep our neighborhoods free of illegal drugs and gang violence, we will continue to work closely with our local law enforcement partners to vigorously enforce federal drug and firearms laws.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford said, “Dismantling violent gangs is a continuing priority for the FBI. Our efforts to address gang violence are not new, but we are working with our partners with increased manpower and increased urgency to address current circumstances. Today’s arrests and charges are the result of a successful, long term investigation conducted by the FBI and the Paterson and Clifton Police Departments.”
Paterson Police Department Acting Chief William Fraher said, “It is critically important for cities like Paterson to leverage their existing collaborative relationships with federal and local law enforcement to reduce not only the actual violence in our communities but also reducing the perception of fear which can be just as important.”
Clifton Police Department Chief Gary F. Giardina said, “Problems faced by law enforcement do not stop at the city borders. What is one city’s problem most likely is the next city’s and at times overlaps into the next state. It is for these reasons that it is imperative that agencies work in partnership to be successful. In this case, Clifton Police worked in partnership with the Paterson Police and FBI in order to bring this investigation to a successful conclusion.”
According to the allegations in the superseding indictment unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:
Various “sets” of the Bloods, particularly the Fruit Town Brims and Sex Money Murder, among others, operated in Paterson, often coordinating, collaborating, and working together (defined in the Indictment as the “Paterson Bloods”). Ranking members of the Paterson Bloods would often meet to resolve disputes between their respective “soldier” members of the sets and could direct punishment against non-members. Among these punishments were that individuals were to be assaulted or killed by members of the Paterson Bloods.
The Paterson Bloods operated the drug markets in certain central locations in Paterson, New Jersey, including, in particular: North Main Street from East Main Street to Jefferson Street (an area known as “The Main”); Graham Avenue/Rosa Parks Boulevard from Lyon Street to Franklin Street (“The Boulevard”); Graham Avenue/Rosa Parks Boulevard from 12th Avenue to Hamilton Avenue; 12th Avenue from East 22nd Street to East 24th Street; 10th Avenue from East 26th Street to East 30th Street; Governor Street from Graham Avenue to Summer Street (“Up the Hill”); and Park Avenue from Madison Avenue to East 16th Street. Members of the Paterson Bloods were permitted to sell heroin and “crack” cocaine in these areas. Generally, non-members, outsiders, and rival narcotics dealers were prohibited or prevented from distributing narcotics in areas controlled by the Paterson Bloods. Certain individuals—such as people who had grown up in areas controlled by the Paterson Bloods, people of neutral gang or neighborhood group affiliation, or marijuana dealers who often sold to members of the Paterson Bloods—were permitted to distribute narcotics in areas controlled by the Paterson Bloods but did so without the protection of the members of the Paterson Bloods and at the risk of being robbed by members of the gang. For example, on June 17, 2013, a drug dispute broke out in the area of 12th Avenue and 22nd Street, during which the defendant Rachaun Parker, a member of the Fruit Town Brims set of the Bloods, assisted an individual who was considered a “neutral” from his neighborhood. Members of the Fruit Town Brims, including defendants Hakim Lowery and Jamar Edwards, violently beat Parker for violating the rules of the set.
Members of the Paterson Bloods and their associates committed and conspired, attempted, and threatened to commit acts of violence to protect and expand their drug trafficking operations and to protect fellow members of the gang. These acts included beatings, stabbings, and shootings intended to prevent people not affiliated with the Paterson Bloods from distributing narcotics in areas controlled by the gang, or to dissuade members of rival gangs, such as the Latin Kings, from encroaching on territory controlled by the Paterson Bloods.
Members of the charged narcotics distribution conspiracy agreed to possess and distribute heroin, “crack” cocaine, and cocaine powder in the Bronx, Manhattan, and New Jersey. On at least two occasions, certain defendants, armed with loaded guns, delivered what they believed to be approximately one kilogram of cocaine to an address in the Bronx in return for delivery fees.

* * *

The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the FBI, the Paterson Police Department, and the Clifton Police Department. The investigation is a result of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force program, and it combined the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with local law enforcement.
The Office’s Violent Crimes Unit is overseeing the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justina L. Geraci and Michael D. Maimin are in charge of the prosecution. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolina A. Fornos is in charge of the asset forfeiture components of the case.
The charges contained in the superseding indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Authorities bust alleged heroin distributors in Berkeley Township

BERKELEY TOWNSHIP - Authorities say they have busted a heroin distribution scheme that was based out of a retirement community in Berkeley Township.
Investigators say the bust yielded $4,000 worth of heroin and the arrests of two alleged dealers in the Holiday City development community.
Prosecutors say Valerie Sorensen was storing the drugs in her home within the community.
READ MORE: New Jersey Crime Stories
Sorensen and Albert Dross, who is also suspected to be involved in the drug ring, are charged with possesion and intent to distribute.

As a budding business, marijuana not for the faint-hearted

The day after New Year's, Ralph Morgan is watching crowds of people lining up outside the Evergreen Apothecary in Denver with what looks to be a mixture of pride, elation and apprehension.

Morgan, 40, is one of Evergreen's owners, and the excited horde of people at his shop have lined up to become some of the first adults in Colorado to legally purchase cannabis for recreational use under a new state law. And he admits he never expected the crush of people that have come to buy his product.

“In fact,” he said, “we printed 250 certificates so that people could use those as a memento to archive the event, and we were out of those by about 8:15 a.m.”

Morgan and his wife Heidi started Evergreen four years ago as a legal medical marijuana facility. Before that, he worked for several large companies in medical device sales and marketing. He says he was intrigued by the growing trend in legal medical marijuana and began researching the industry.

“I knew it was going to be a part of history, started doing some due diligence on it and learned that, wow, there is tremendous medical efficacy here,” he recalled.

The Morgans found commercial space in south Denver, along with a landlord who was open to the idea of housing a cannabis shop. “We admitted to him that we didn't have any idea of what we were doing, had never grown marijuana,” Morgan laughed.”We just thought it was a phenomenon, and it was a part of history.”
The first year was a struggle. Morgan says for a while there were more people coming into their store trying to sell them marijuana than actual customers. But his company then began targeting older cannabis consumers. During the first first year, the average age of the Apothecary's customer base was 64.

“We didn't satisfy the [typical marijuana user's] stereotype, that's for certain,” he said. “We really enjoyed speaking with people who were finding tremendous success with their ailments with cannabis.”

They soon started a second company, Organalabs, that extracts cannabis oil for tablets, use in portable vaporizers and other applications. And a year later the Morgans merged with another group, Colorado Harvest Colony.

Unlike other small businesses, the medical marijuana industry in Colorado – and now its recreational counterpart – is burdened with very specific regulations. State law requires companies to grow at least 70 percent of the product they sell. Recreational marijuana also comes with a stiff sales tax meant to fund state education projects.
Because marijuana remains a felony under federal law, most banks and financial institutions won't work with the cannabis industry, forcing dispensaries to deal largely in cash-only transactions.

“You're forced to grow organically,” Morgan said, referring to his business model and not his cannabis plants. “It's great to not have debt, which we don't. However, you're shackled to what you can afford. So you can steal equity from the home, you can ask friends and family. But the market's maturing. A lot of people now are interested in investing.”

Like other established companies in Colorado's cannabis industry, Morgan and his group ramped-up production after the 2012 elections, when the state's voters approved the sale of recreational marijuana to adults. But even that advance planning couldn't prepare him for the rabid consumer demand unleashed on Jan. 1 when the new law went into effect.

 “At this pace, we're going to be out of product to sell people on the [recreational] side in a matter of weeks,” he said. If Evergreen runs out, a new crop is harvested weekly at the company's grow facilities and a new supply, while limited, comes on the market.
Once the hoopla and pent-up demand for marijuana dies down, Morgan predicts this budding new business is going to see “tremendous stability” – and open the door for the legalization of cannabis in yet more states.

Berlin supermarkets receive banana boxes stuffed with cocaine

Boxes filled with bananas and cocaine were delivered to five Berlin supermarkets in what police on Tuesday called a "logistical error" by drug smugglers.

Supermarket staff discovered the containers with a total of 140 kg (around 300 pounds) of cocaine on Monday shortly before the fruit went on sale to the public, police and customs investigators said.

It was the largest discovery of cocaine in Germany's capital in about 15 years and has an estimated black market value of around $8 million, according to police.

"We were of course surprised," senior police officer Olaf Schremm, who heads the local drug investigation department, told reporters. "I don't know where the mistake was in the perpetrators' delivery chain."

The banana cartons, part of a consignment of 1,134 boxes, were brought by ship from Colombia to Hamburg and delivered to a fruit wholesaler in Berlin. Cocaine was found in seven of them, Schremm said.

The boxes were eventually delivered to five supermarkets in the Berlin area, but investigators said the intended destination of the cocaine was unclear.

Masked officers in bulletproof vests showed the seized boxes to media. The cocaine will be stored and eventually destroyed.

Drugs are often smuggled in container ships from South America to Europe, the police said, adding that it is very difficult to keep track of thousands of containers which are stored in the port of Hamburg for only a short time.

"At the end of the day, it's beyond one's control," Schremm said.

German authorities say drug smugglers use air mail or couriers to import cocaine more often than ships. In 2012, investigators seized 1.26 metric tons of cocaine in total.

Ohio Woman Sentenced to Probation with Home Detention for Role in Marijuana Distribution Conspiracy

JOHNSTOWN, PA—A resident of Hanoverton, Ohio has been sentenced in federal court to five years of probation, the first 12 months of which must be served by conditions of home confinement, on her conviction of conspiracy to distribute and possess marijuana, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
United States District Judge Kim R. Gibson imposed the sentence on Bonnie L. Chapman, 63, of 32091 Woodale Dr., Hanoverton, Ohio.
According to information presented to the court, from March 2009 to May 9, 2011, Chapman conspired with George M. Lowmaster to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana in order to facilitate and promote Lowmaster’s drug distribution organization.
Assistant United States Attorney John J. Valkovci, Jr. prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the joint task force, headed by the Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Chapman. Other agencies participating on the task force include the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; Pennsylvania State Police; the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office; the Cambria County District Attorney’s Office; the Carrolltown Police Department; the Patton Police Department; the Ebensburg Police Department; the Portage Police Department; and the Paint Township Police Department.

Founder and Leader of Newburgh Latin Kings Sentenced to Life Plus 85 Years in Prison for Murder, Racketeering, Drug Distribution, and Other Crimes

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that WILSON PAGAN, 27, the founder and top leader of the Latin Kings gang in Newburgh, New York (the Newburgh Latin Kings), was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel in White Plains federal court to life plus 85 years in prison. PAGAN was convicted of murder; racketeering; conspiracy to distribute crack, cocaine, and heroin; assault; and using and carrying firearms in connection with violent crimes. PAGAN is one of 35 members and associates of the gang who were charged in the case, all of whom have been convicted, 28 of whom have thus far been sentenced.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated: “Mr. Pagan was a gang leader, and what he led his followers to was a gang member’s life filled with death, blood, guns, drugs, and jail—and for him the gangster life in the street has become the inmate’s life in prison, forever. Gang leaders, members, associates, and wannabes in Newburgh and throughout the Hudson Valley need to understand—we will not tolerate gang violence. You will go to prison for it, potentially for the rest of your life.”
According to the indictment and evidence presented at trial:
PAGAN founded the Newburgh Latin Kings, and grew the gang from roughly a dozen members in 2008 to more than 50 members and associates by early 2010. On May 6, 2008, PAGAN ordered aspiring gang members to go on a so-called mission, during which they committed a drive-by shooting and killed, mistakenly, Jeffrey Zachary, a 15-year old boy who was an innocent bystander. PAGAN sold crack and heroin and helped other members and associates of his gang sell drugs, including at spots the Latin Kings controlled, such as the corner of Benkard Avenue and William Street in Newburgh. PAGAN also assaulted rivals of his gang and carried guns and instructed others to carry guns to protect PAGAN and the Newburgh Latin Kings’ drug turf. In leading the gang, PAGAN recruited and inducted new members, instructed the members how to behave in order to protect and conceal the gang’s criminal activities, and issued orders to gang members to shoot and assault others. PAGAN organized and led gang meetings for this purpose. During one such meeting, according to papers filed with the court, PAGAN told more than 20 assembled gang members: “[W]e don’t even live by rules of society... .”

***

Mr. Bharara thanked the Hudson Valley Safe Streets Task Force for their work on the Latin Kings investigation. The Task Force is led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and combines the resources of dozens of law enforcement officers from federal, state, and local agencies and departments, including agents and officers of the FBI; the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the City of Newburgh Police Department; Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; the Middletown Police Department; the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, and the New York State Police.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin Allee, Abigail Kurland, and Nicholas McQuaid are in charge of the prosecution.