Convicted Felon Sentenced for Trafficking Over 6 Kilograms of Cocaine

RICHMOND, Va. – A Mexican citizen was sentenced today to 13 years in prison for possessing with the intent to distribute over six kilograms of cocaine in Chesterfield County.

According to court documents, on April 17, 2023, Francisco Celedon, 47, met with a law enforcement confidential informant to deliver 6.053 kilograms of cocaine. Celedon was a drug courier for a Mexican drug trafficking organization. At the time of the offense, Celedon was on federal supervised release for a prior federal drug trafficking crime in the Middle District of Alabama.

Celedon was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the possession with the intent to distribute charge and 3 years in prison for violations of his federal supervised release stemming from his prior conviction.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Jason Miyares, Attorney General of Virginia; Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Washington Division; and Colonel Jeffrey S. Katz, Chesterfield County Chief of Police, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Erik S. Siebert and Shea Gibbons and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Ellen Hubbard prosecuted the case. 

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:23-cr-69.