Source: United States Department of Justice News
PHOENIX, Ariz. – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona announced today that the following individuals are in custody following the return of a 70-count indictment by a federal grand jury against 22 Arizonans, including:
- Marcus Wayne Wesley, 35, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Jesus Salazar, 24, of Avondale, Arizona
- Philip Nathaneal Austin, 42, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Alfred Wayne Wesley, 61, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Lequisha Shantai Jack, 36, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Rayvontae Virshon Hampton, 28, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Edward Jewel Norwood, 28, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Michael Dewanz Gibson, 26, of Florence, Arizona
- Joshua Jordaun Jackson, 31, of Buckeye, Arizona
- David Andrew Connelly, 59, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Terry Lee King II, 40, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Lancer Edward Williams Jr., 36, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Tyrell Ann Gray, 53, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Donald Eugene Reed, 60, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Quincy Lamar Davis, 38, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Joseph Kizzee, 36, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Christopher Duane Guy, 30, of Phoenix, Arizona
- James Donald Estell, 41, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Terry Lee King, Sr., 62, of Phoenix, Arizona
- Christopher Marcus Mitchell, 35, of Goodyear, Arizona
Each of the above individuals was charged with either conspiracy to distribute cocaine, conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, or both. A number of the defendants are also charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. Furthermore, Marcus Wesley, Hampton, Williams, Austin, Davis, Guy, Estell, and King Sr. are charged with being felons in possession of a firearm. Finally, Hampton, Wesley, and Gray face additional charges for carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, and Hampton faces additional charges for transferring or possessing a machinegun.
According to the criminal complaints filed last week, in January 2020, the Arizona Department of Public Safety (“DPS”) began an investigation targeting a drug and firearms supplier in South Phoenix. In February 2021, in conjunction with the DPS investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (“FBI”) Violent Street Gang Task Force began investigating the Lindo Park Crips (“LPC”), a criminal street gang operating in South Phoenix. The investigation targeted numerous LPC members and associates, as well as their drug suppliers. Over the course of the investigation, law enforcement officers seized over 2,430 grams of cocaine, 35,000 counterfeit M30 pills suspected to contain fentanyl, 26 grams of methamphetamine, 4.5 grams of crack cocaine, 32 doses of MDMA, 8 Glock Conversion devices, and 17 firearms. In connection with the investigation, the FBI also executed over a dozen search warrants on June 23, 2022, leading to the additional seizure of ammunition, narcotics, and 62 firearms.
A conviction for conspiracy to distribute or possessing with intent to sell the amounts of cocaine charged carries a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison and a $5,000,000 fine. A conviction for conspiracy to distribute or possessing with intent to sell the amounts of fentanyl charged in the complaint carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a $10,000,000 fine. A conviction for illegally possessing a firearm carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. A conviction for carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a mandatory penalty of 5 years imprisonment, and a conviction for transferring or possessing a machinegun carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.
An indictment is simply a method by which a person is charged with criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The FBI, Phoenix Police Department, and DPS led the investigation, with significant contributions from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, and the United States Marshals Service. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Phoenix, is handling the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR-22-725-PHX-DLR
RELEASE NUMBER: 2022-101_Wesley, et al.
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
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