Six arrested for Drug Conspiracy involving Heroin and Methamphetamin and for Money Laundering, five additional defendants still at large

Anchorage, Alaska - U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that on April 16, 2013, a federal Grand Jury in Alaska returned a 36-count indictment against 11 individuals for their involvement in a drug conspiracy involving the distribution of heroin and methamphetamine in Alaska and the Eastern District of California, along with money laundering, and conspiracy to launder proceeds of the unlawful distribution of controlled substances.

This case is related to the recently announced, “Operation Gideon IV”, a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives multi-layered initiative designed to target and remove violent criminals who illegally traffic and possess firearms and to dismantle criminal organizations operating in Stockton, California.
Those indicted include:

• Phillip Dixon Jr., AKA “Cheddar”, 28, of Manteca, CA;
• George Little, AKA “Nino”, 23, of Stockton, CA;
• Gloria Sarinana, 27, of Stockton, CA;
• Justin Fisher, 28, of Stockton, CA;
• Kyle Wislon, 24, of Chugiak, AK;
• Marcos Diaz, 25, of Stockton, CA;
• Norris Drummond, JR., 21, of Stockton, CA;
• Cesar Serna, 23, of Stockton, CA;
• Anthony Mixon, AKA “Ray”, 19, of Stockton, CA; and,
• Harry Hawkins III, AKA “Paulie”, 33, of Stockton, CA.

Special Agents of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, IRS Criminal Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Agency, Homeland Security Investigations, and the California Highway Patrol have arrested Dixon, Little, Hawkins, Sarinana, Fisher, and Wilson. Wilson and Little were in Anchorage, Alaska. The other four defendants currently in custody were arrested in Stockton, California.

According to the indictment, between April 2012 and April 2013, Dixon, Diaz, Hawkins, Mixon, Serna, Little, Drummond, and Wilson, distributed heroin in Alaska.  Between November 2012 and March 2013, Dixon, Drummond, and Little distributed methamphetamine in Alaska. In December 2012, Dixon distributed methamphetamine in Alaska and in the Eastern District of California.

The indictment further alleges that Dixon, Fisher, Sarinana, Serna, Diaz, Mixon, and Drummond conspired with one another to launder the proceeds of the drug sales in an attempt to conceal and disguise the nature, source, ownership, and control of the funds, and that they in fact laundered money in connection with transfers of money from Alaska to the Eastern District of California, knowing that the money represented the proceeds of drug sales.

The case is being investigated under the purview of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force which is made up of personnel from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations, Internal Revenue Service–Criminal Investigation, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Coast Guard, and the Anchorage Police Department.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephan Collins, Lead Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force Attorney for the District of Alaska, who presented the case to the grand jury, if convicted, the defendants face a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years prison for the drug conspiracy charge and a potential maximum of life imprisonment and a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment for the money laundering charges. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.