California Man Sentenced For Heroin Trafficking

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – AL VERNON BROWN (“BROWN”), age 52, a Los Angeles, California resident, was sentenced on September 18, 2024, by U.S. District Judge Mary Ann Vial Lemmon, after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(B), and 846, as well as, distribution and possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B). BROWN was sentenced to 60 months imprisonment, 4 years of supervised release, and a $200 mandatory special assessment fee.

According to court documents, BROWN mailed half-kilogram quantities of heroin from California to his co-conspirators in New Orleans, including CHRISTOPHER JOHNSON and KEVIN JOHNSON.  On June 22, 2021, agents seized a package containing 485 grams of heroin that was mailed by BROWN to Metairie, Louisiana and was intended for KEVIN JOHNSON.

The  Federal Bureau of Investigation - New Orleans Gang Task Force, with the assistance of the New Orleans Police Department, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the Gretna Major Crimes Task Force, led the investigation.  The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Rachal Cassagne of the Narcotics Unit.