TALLAHASSEE MAN SENTENCED FOR MARIJUANA TRAFFICKING AND MONEY LAUNDERING

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Wesley D. Thomas, 37, of Tallahassee, Florida, was sentenced to two years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute 1000 kilograms or more of marijuana, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “Dismantling this transnational drug trafficking scheme required close collaboration and cooperation between our outstanding state and federal law enforcement partners, and my office delivered yet another successful prosecution to send this offender to federal prison.”

The defendant led a drug-trafficking organization moving thousands of pounds of marijuana from the West Coast to Tallahassee, Florida. The defendant would pay young men and women to fly from California and Oregon and then return with multiple checked suitcases full of vacuum-sealed marijuana. A codefendant was caught flying into Tallahassee International Airport from Medford, Oregon with suitcases containing 61 pounds of marijuana. The defendant also paid for marijuana to be driven from the West Coast to Tallahassee. One such driver who was prosecuted federally in Georgia was stopped with approximately 100 pounds of marijuana in the car. He estimated that he would transport 350 to 500 pounds of marijuana per month for the defendant and had been doing so for approximately 18 months. The defendant also paid others to use bank accounts, checks, wires, and money orders to launder his drug proceeds. Seven of the defendant’s managers and couriers were also prosecuted and have already been sentenced.

“This transnational drug trafficking case was a joint effort with multiple law enforcement partners,” said DEA Miami Field Division Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter. “These relationships allow us to better do our jobs and bring criminals like Mr. Thomas to justice.”

“Law-abiding citizens are negatively affected by drug trafficking organizations, such as the one Wesley Thomas led, because they increase crime in their communities,” said Special Agent in Charge Ron Loecker, IRS Criminal Investigation Tampa Field Office. “In an effort to make communities safer, IRS Criminal Investigation, our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners will continue diligently finding, investigating and forwarding for prosecution those who engage in trafficking illegal drugs.”

The case involved a joint investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and Florida Department of Law Enforcement, with assistance from the Tallahassee Police Department, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, and Florida Highway Patrol. Assistant United States Attorney James A. McCain prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.  To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.