Repeat Felon, a PCP Dealer, Sentenced to 110 Months in Prison for Drug Trafficking and Illegal Firearms Possession

            WASHINGTON – Francisco Roche, 35, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 110 months in prison for trafficking distribution-level quantities of liquid PCP  – packaged in baby bottles – in the District’s Petworth neighborhood. Roche also was sentenced for possessing a loaded firearm in public, despite being on probation for four separate felony convictions.

            The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro, Special Agent in Charge Ibrar A. Mian of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Washington Division, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            Roche, aka “Roach,” pleaded guilty on Feb. 14, 2025, to conspiracy to distribute phencyclidine (PCP) and to unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. In addition to the prison term, Judge Beryl A. Howell ordered Roche to serve five years of supervised release.

            According to court documents, Roche and a co-conspirator made several PCP sales to confidential police informants and others.

            On Dec. 4, 2023, Roche sold about eight ounces of liquid PCP, packaged in a baby bottle, to an informant. On Dec. 13, 2023, Roche sold an informant about five ounces of PCP, packaged again in a baby bottle, four zips of a powder containing fentanyl, and a twist bag of crack cocaine.

            On Dec. 22, 2023, law enforcement arrested Roche at his residence Northwest and executed a search warrant. Officer found drugs and a bag containing numerous liquid drippers—a tool that may be used to transfer liquids such as PCP from one container to another, a juice bottle containing two ounces of liquid PCP, and a pack of cigarettes.

            In addition to the PCP distribution conspiracy, on Dec. 7, 2023, MPD officers on patrol near 12th Street NW and H Street NW observed a black handgun located in the center cupholder of a parked car. A short time later, Roche and another person began to enter the car before being stopped by police. The officers recovered a black Ruger LC9 pistol, loaded with eight rounds of ammunition.

            Roche was arrested on Dec. 22, 2023, and was detained at the Department of Corrections Central Detention Center. Despite his incarceration, he actively coordinated with his co-conspirator to continue to distribute PCP.

            This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the DEA Washington Division. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany V. Wynn and Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Strong.