Ohio Men Sentenced For Conspiring To Distribute More Than Five Kilograms Of Cocaine

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge William F. Jung today sentenced Virgil Cooper (42) and Angelo Jordan (49), both residents of Ohio, for conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and attempting to possess with the intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. Cooper was sentenced to 19 years and 7 months in federal prison and Jordan was sentenced to 15 years and 8 months in federal prison. A federal jury found both guilty on May 1, 2025.

According to testimony and evidence presented during the four-day trial, Cooper contacted a former federal prison cellmate who had been deported to his native country of Colombia after serving his sentence, wanting to purchase multiple kilograms of cocaine directly from Colombia at a discount rate. The former cellmate introduced Cooper to a Drug Enforcement Administration confidential source who helped arrange for a viewing of 10 kilograms of cocaine with undercover officers in Tampa in February 2023. Since Cooper was still serving his sentence from a prior felony in a halfway house, he sent his co-conspirator, Jordan, on his behalf. Jordan drove 17 hours from Ohio to Tampa to view the cocaine. An image from the video of that meeting is below:

Government Trial Exhibit 6

After repeated communications and Cooper’s release from the halfway house, Cooper and Jordan traveled from Cleveland to Tampa on August 3, 2023, to deliver a down payment of $120,000 in cash for an initial 30 kilograms of cocaine. They were subsequently arrested. An image from the video of that meeting is below:

Government Trial Exhibit 26

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney David Rehfuss and Assistant United States Attorney E. Jackson Boggs, Jr.

This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. 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 www.justice.gov/OCDETF