FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACTAUSA VICKIE E. LEDUC or MARCIA MURPHY at 410-209-4885

APRIL 19, 2007

NEW JERSEY CORRECTIONAL OFFICER SENTENCED IN DRUG CONSPIRACY

One of 30 Defendants Convicted in Scheme

Greenbelt, Maryland - U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Milton Earl Boyd, also known as Ramesh Kumar, age 40, of Lumberton, New Jersey, today to 55 months in prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release for conspiracy to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine in connection with a large drug trafficking enterprise operating in Maryland, the District of Columbia, New York and elsewhere, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. Boyd was a New Jersey correctional officer for 19 years.

According to his plea agreement, from at least January through May 8, 2004, Boyd conspired with Edward Barber, age 43, of the Bronx, New York, and Luis Mangual, age 46, of Washington, D.C., to distribute cocaine. Between February and April 26, 2004, Boyd acted as a courier for Barber, transporting multiple kilograms of cocaine to Mangual in Maryland and Washington, D.C. During one delivery on April 26, 2004, agents observed Boyd hand Mangual a box containing 7 kilograms of cocaine, which Mangual placed inside his residence. A review of telephone records established that Boyd had made previous deliveries in March and April 2004.

Boyd and Barber, who pleaded guilty to the same charges, were the last of 30 defendants convicted in this multistate drug trafficking scheme. According to evidence presented during the trials and guilty pleas of the other 28 defendants, from January 1997 to June 2004 the defendants conspired to distribute cocaine, heroin and cocaine base, importing kilogram quantities of cocaine from New York, California, Wyoming, Florida, Texas and Mexico. During the course of the investigation over 20 kilograms of cocaine and over 3 kilograms of heroin were seized. Mangual was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute more than 150 kilograms of cocaine and more than 1.5 kilograms of crack cocaine. Other co-defendants have been sentenced to between 135 months and life in prison, and several others are awaiting sentencing.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the investigative work performed by the agencies in this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case, including the Prince George’s and Montgomery County Police Departments; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation; the Washington-Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force; Bureau of Customs and Border Protection; Drug Enforcement Adminstration Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Howard County Police Departments; and the Maryland State Police. Mr. Rosenstein also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Deborah A. Johnston and Bonnie S. Greenberg, who prosecuted the case.