Federal agents say they have disrupted a multimillion-dollar drug ring responsible for distributing a ton of cocaine in the region in one year alone.
The operation was so intricate, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, that drug delivery vehicles were equipped with hidden hydraulic traps where cocaine and marijuana were stashed.
A federal grand jury Wednesday indicted Cedric Montez Williams on three drug and firearms charges. He is the suspected ring leader of the organization.
Williams has been in custody since August and is scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment Nov. 18 in U.S. District Court.
Williams initially escaped from DEA agents in Greensboro, N.C., by jumping from the third-floor balcony of a home while holding a black duffel bag with 5 kilos, or 11 pounds, of cocaine, according to a court filing.
Several court filings indicate that Williams has been in the drug trade for 10 years. He was convicted in Newport News in 2000 of a drug offense and sentenced to 10 years in prison, with all but one year suspended.
The DEA said agents began investigating Williams in January.
They learned through informants that Williams allegedly was dealing multi-kilo quantities of cocaine and marijuana throughout the region, from points based in Chesapeake and Newport News.
Newport News police, in an unrelated matter, discovered a kilo of cocaine, or 2.2 pounds, and $69,000 in cash at Williams' girlfriend's apartment in that city last December when officers responded to a break-in call.
At the time, the DEA said, Williams fled to Greensboro, where his Mexican drug source lived.
The agents said in court filings that they soon learned that Williams was living a life of luxury, though he had not been employed in years. He drove expensive cars, traveled frequently to New York, Miami and other cities and attended high-profile sports events, such as the NBA All-Star game.
An informant told the DEA that between 2005 and 2006, Williams' drug source supplied him with about 1,000 kilos, or 2,200 pounds, of cocaine, DEA agent Jack Faddis Jr. said in a court affidavit.
On Aug. 24, DEA agents had gathered enough evidence to make an arrest.
In Greensboro, the agents followed Williams from a home to a storage unit, where he retrieved a box, and returned to the home. When the agents stormed the house, Williams jumped from the third floor, dropping the duffel bag before escaping, the DEA said.
He was arrested the next day in Charlotte.
His cousin, Corey Tiquan Williams, who was also charged in the indictment, has not yet been arrested.
Tim McGlone, (757) 446-2343, tim.mcglone@pilotonline.com
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Mustang.Freddy ----------------
That may be perhaps the dumbest thing I have ever heard! It's obvious to me that you spend way too much time sampling your stash because your brain cells ahve died!
Pardon
Are going to sentence them to another 10/20 Years and then let him out again in two? Start electing our judges NOW!
the cure
Is to take all the confiscated drugs and put them on every street corner in the country. Problem solved in about a week but it's going to smell bad for awhile.
So true
Ya'll funny!
Dumb Criminal Show!
$69k in cash and a kilo of cocaine in the house and you invite the police in after a break in! What was the complaint "someone tried to steal my stash"! LOL!
legalize crime
We pump endless amounts of money into a failed policy. No matter how much we spend on the war on crime, people continue to break the law. We should, therefore, legalize everything. Look what happened when prohibition ended...alcohol related crimes stopped, and organized crime went the way of the dinosaur.
When nothing is illegal America will be a much safer place.
legalize and tax
I know that some people will declare this is immoral and harmful to society...so is alchohol and tobacco and look at the billions the government makes from this industry...and how about no incarserating the "criminals" and paying for that industry...and eliminating the need for police forces to stalk this industry...then we tax it all and make more billions for politicians to spend as they deem politically wise...people will do what they want...get it through your heads...people are sinners...tax their sins and raise money for your social programs that don't change the basic fact that people are sinners
nah
"..organized crime went the way of the dinosaur."
Nah - it's alive and well on Capitol Hill!
simply said
AMEN to wizbang, the first post
Where are the users?
Is it literally a ton of cocaine, because that is a lot. Where are the users and why haven't they been arrested? Until that happens, there will always be someone willing to take a chance on dealing.
You clearly have no idea who
You clearly have no idea who the big market is for marching powder; rich people with power and influence... even so, hunting down the users is wrong and not a productive use of money
that's about as practical as hunting down every person who's ever drank underage or smoked a cigarette before they are 18
Its a bit troubling so much money is spent funding this but a violent offender or rapist can get out of jail in a 1/4 the time
I do have an idea
The point I was trying to make is a TON of cocaine is A LOT, and if that figure is the un-cut amount, you're probably in the vicinity of 1 1/2 tons. That is A LOT of people buying cocaine, not just movers and shakers (no pun intended).
Probably politicians and
Probably politicians and business elite of the region. I don't think you'll ever see a customer list :-)
Awesome job DEA!!
Great Job by the DEA Team and local law enforcement! Keep up the great work and keep yourselves safe!!
Line!
There is a line of people waiting to take his place! There's no disruption here. Just an interruption!
Drugs
After all the hard work done by the police, the courts will give him another sentence and suspend all but six months. The money spent for these investigations should be used for more jails and put these people away for life. The users should be sent away with them.
Sentence
These are Federal Charges. The manditory minimum is 10 years. Based on the quantify of drugs tied to him he will get 30 years to life without parole, If they can tie guns to him probably Life without parole.
The only way to go away for less than that is to give up their source.
Legalize it!
Legalize it, tax it, and pay for the health care reforms, instead of robbing the middle class to pay for it.
You want to legalize drugs
You want to legalize drugs like cocaine, in a society where people can't handle alcohol?
Well if that is all that is needed...
... To make something illegal, then we should outlaw all kinds of stuff. Most of society cannot handle a car, casual sex, alcohol, kids, pit bulls, etc. These people cannot handle LIFE, it's not about the drugs. That is why there is NO ONE in this country who, if they wanted a drug badly enough, could not get it. The problem is the WAYS they choose to get it. It is the violence which accompanies the drug trade which is the problem, not junkies.