July 29, 2010

INDICTMENT: COCAINE WAS HIDDEN IN VAN, STORY ABOUT SICK AUNT WASN’T TRUE

TOPEKA, KAN. – Derrick A. Moore, 28, Ferguson, Mo., is charged in a superseding indictment with one count of possession with intent to distribute 3.9 kilograms (about 8.6 pounds) of cocaine. He also is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, one count of using a telephone in furtherance of drug trafficking and one count of making a false statement to an agent of the Drug Enforcement Administration. The crimes are alleged to have occurred March 13, 2009.

Moore initially was charged in an indictment filed in May 2009. According to court documents, Moore was arrested March 13, 2009, when a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper stopped a car in which he was riding on Interstate 70 in Shawnee County. Investigators found four kilo-sized packages of cocaine hidden in the trunk. The superseding indictment alleges Moore lied to investigators when he told them he was accompanying a woman in the car, co-defendant Tammy T. Franklin, to visit a sick aunt in Denver. Franklin pleaded guilty and is set for sentencing Sept. 15, 2010.

If convicted, Moore faces a penalty of not less than five years and not more than 40 years and a fine up to $2 million on each of the two possession counts, a maximum penalty of four years and a fine up to $250,000 on the telephone count and a maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of lying to an investigator. The Kansas Highway Patrol and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard is prosecuting.

OTHER INDICTMENTS

A federal grand jury meeting in Topeka, Kan., also returned the following indictments:

Michael E. Townson, 48, Ft. Riley, Kan., is charged with three counts of abusive sexual contact with a girl less than 16 years of age. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in 2009 and 2010 at Fort Riley.

If convicted, he faces a penalty of up to life in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. The Army Criminal Investigation Division investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Rusch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Kenney are prosecuting.

Agrasiano Antonio Davila, 24, Olathe, Kan., Rosemary Flores, 32, Houston, Texas, Wilson Hugo Chavez, 25, Olathe, Kan., Jose Flores, 32, Houston, Texas, Margaret Flores, 39, Houston, Texas, Elida Guadalupe Herrera-Morales, 35, Green City, Mo., are charged with conspiracy to distribute marijuana and other drug trafficking counts. The crimes are alleged to have occurred at various times from July 1, 2009, to July 12, 2010, in Olathe and northeast Kansas.

A criminal complaint filed earlier this month alleges the investigation began July 13, 2010, when a Wichita police officer stopped a White dodge van for a traffic violation. Investigators found 46.9 kilograms (more than 103 pounds) of marijuana concealed in the floorboards. They arranged for the marijuana to be kept under surveillance while it was delivered to its destination in Olathe, Kan.

Upon conviction, the alleged crimes carry the following penalties:
Conspiracy: A maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.
Possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine: Not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $4 million.
Possession with intent to distribute marijuana: A maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.
Possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking: Not less than five years and not more than life and a fine up to $250,000.
Maintaining a residence in furtherance of drug trafficking: A maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $250,000.

The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sheri McCracken is prosecuting.

Ronald R. Williams, Jr., 32, Kansas City, Mo., and Ricky D. Webster, 34, Kansas City, Kan., are charged with one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute crack cocaine, three counts of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of crack cocaine, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and one count each of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in June and July 2010 in Kansas City, Kan.

Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Conspiracy: Not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $4 million.
Possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine: A maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $2 million on each count.
Possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of crack: Not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $4 million.
Unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking: Not less than five years and not more than life and a fine up to $250,000.
Unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction: A maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.

Damon R. Glass, 23, Topeka, Kan., is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The crimes are alleged to have occurred June 10, 2010, in Shawnee County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million on the cocaine charge, a maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000 on the marijuana charge, a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction and not less than five years and not more than life and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard is prosecuting.

Efrain Delara-Torres, 32, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony and deported. He was found June 10, 2010, in Sedgwick County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years without parole and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

Mario Quintana-Garcia, 42, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony and deported. He was found June 26, 2010, in Sherman County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years without parole and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.