Press Releases
NEW ORLEANS MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO ROLE AS CRACK COOK IN METAIRIE AND LAKEVIEW DRUG CONSPIRACY
May 13, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
KENDALL BAGNERIS, a/k/a Doodle, a/k/a 101, age 41, a resident of New Orleans, pled guilty today in federal court to a Superceding Indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine hydrochloride and 50 grams or more of cocaine base, announced U. S. Attorney Jim Letten. BAGNERIS was charged with 13 other individuals in a multiple count indictment which charged conspiracy and using a telephone to facilitate drug trafficking.
According to court documents, in May 2007, Special Agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration began an investigation into the drug trafficking activities of QUINCY BROWN and others in the Eastern District of Louisiana. During the course of the investigation, agents made undercover purchases of cocaine powder and crack from BROWN. Agents also utilized a court-ordered Title III wiretap of his phone which revealed the identities of BROWN’s customers and suppliers. BROWN, who mainly distributed cocaine and crack in Metairie and Lakeview, had amassed over $640,000 in cash, the majority of which he kept in safe deposit boxes at local banks. On March 11, 2009, BROWN pled guilty to having distributed between 15 and 50 kilograms of cocaine powder and 500 grams to 1.5 kilograms of cocaine base. BAGNERIS admitted to having cooked between 1 to 1 ½ ounces of cocaine base for BROWN twice a month for the last 18 months. BROWN, who has no prior criminal convictions, faces a mandatory minimum of ten (10) years to life imprisonment, a $4 million fine, and at least five (5) years supervised release. BAGNERIS faces a mandatory minimum of ten (10) years up to a possible sentence of life imprisonment, a $4 million fine, and at least five (5) years supervised release. BAGNERIS’ sentencing is scheduled for August 12, 2009.
Co-defendants who still awaiting trial in this matter include RICHARD CREAGER, age 50, a resident of Metairie; LINDA ANDERSON, age 42, a resident of Pearl River; STEVEN NICK, age 50, a resident of Metairie; GABRIELLE MORRIS, age 38, a resident of Harahan; and MOHAMMED MORSY, age 47, a resident of Metairie. DARLENE WOODS, age 51, a resident of Metairie, was charged by way of Superceding Bill of Information, with one count of conspiracy and one count of using a telephone in furtherance of drug trafficking crime.
The trial of these defendants is set for June 1, 2009, before Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt.
According to authorities, the case against BROWN and his co-defendants is connected to 45 individual state cases being prosecuted by the Jefferson Parish District Attorney’s office. On November 21, 2008, law enforcement officers arrested those individuals, who were customers and co-conspirators of BROWN, on charges of conspiracy to attempt to possess cocaine. The U.S. Attorney’s office also has a second related case with links to BROWN. On January 22, 2009, a federal grand jury sitting in the Eastern District of Louisiana returned a seven count Superceding Indictment against BLAIR ARROYO, age 37, a resident of New Orleans; DEAN GUAGLIARDO, age 43, a resident of Covington; MICHAEL ANTOINE, age 33, a resident of Kenner; and EARL MEILLEUR, age 61, a resident of New Orleans, charging them with a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine powder and 50 grams or more of crack. Each defendant was additionally charged with having used a telephone in facilitating a drug trafficking offense. ARROYO, who was named in six of the seven counts, was additionally charged with being a felon in possession of firearms, including numerous assault rifles, and possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, and possession with intent to distribute anabolic steroids. The trial of ARROYO and his co-defendants is set for June 15, 2009, before Judge Mary Ann Vial Lemmon.
The federal and state cases are the result of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation involving the Drug Enforcement Administration and the New Orleans Police Department. Also assisting in the enforcement operations were the Louisiana State Police, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, Kenner Police Department, and St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office. OCDETF is an important program which targets the most significant drug trafficking organizations within the United States as well as those outside of the United States borders that impact drug trafficking within the United States.
Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration Jimmy S. Fox III stated:
“This investigation exemplifies the success of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) where various Federal, State and Local law enforcement entities work together to make our streets safer. The task force did an exemplary job identifying and dismantling the entire drug trafficking organization from the street level dealers to the source of supply.”
The DEA lead task force is an executive office of the President, Office of National Drug Control Policy initiative of the Gulf Coast High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA).
United States Attorney Jim Letten praised the law enforcement team for its relentless and untiring efforts to investigate narcotics trafficking in the Eastern District of Louisiana and elsewhere. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tracey Knight and Emily Greenfield.
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