Thirteen South Florida Men Are Sentenced In A Cocaine Trafficking Conspiracy

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Mark R. Trouville, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, Amos Rojas, Jr., United States Marshal, U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), Noel Manheimer, Director of Marine Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Dan Alexander, Chief, Boca Raton Police Department, Bryan Kummerlen, Chief, West Palm Beach Police Department, Scott Israel, Sheriff, Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO), and Dave Aronberg, State Attorney, Office of the State Attorney for Palm Beach County, announce today that Osvaldo Domingo Ceballo, 44, of Hialeah, and Yumar Oliva, 43, of Miami, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Daniel T.K. Hurley for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, and possession with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841. Ceballo was sentenced to 216 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Oliva was sentenced to 151 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Both defendants were convicted by a jury on March 13, 2014, following a two week trial in West Palm Beach.

In October of 2010, DEA, the Boca Raton Police Department, and the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office began an investigation of co-defendant Taverne Pierre Louis’ drug distribution network operating in Haiti, the Bahamas, and in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties. During the course of this two year investigation, law enforcement conducted 14 wiretap investigations during which over 33,000 telephone calls and text messages were intercepted. In addition, law enforcement conducted surveillance operations, executed a number of search warrants, and seized 27 kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride and over 100 grams of cocaine base, commonly referred to as “crack” cocaine. Based upon the totality of the investigation, law enforcement learned that this large scale drug trafficking organization was responsible for the importation of hundreds of kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride from Haiti and the Bahamas for distribution in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties.

A total of fifteen defendants were charged in this indictment, two of which remain fugitives. Taverne Pierre Louis was sentenced to 188 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Frantz Bernard was sentenced to 188 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Joachim Pierre Louis was sentenced to 84 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release; James Francois was sentenced to 84 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Jose Ignacio Sigler was sentenced to 72 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release; Beverly Sharon Miller was sentenced to 60 months in prison, followed by four years of supervised release; Tyrell Patrick Josey was sentenced to 30 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Tremaine Shenard Jackson was sentenced to 120 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Terrence Demetrius Nesbitt was sentenced to 188 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Ronel M. Theodore was sentenced to 121 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; and Kirk Irwin Pierce was sentenced to 84 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

This case is the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The OCDETF mission is to identify, investigate, and prosecute high level members of drug trafficking enterprises, bringing together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the DEA, CBP, Boca Raton Police Department, and Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office. Mr. Ferrer also thanked the USMS, BSO, and the West Palm Beach Police Department for their assistance in this matter. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer C. Nucci.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.