Texas Man Sentenced For Cocaine Distribution

Stacy L. Harden, 42, from Desoto, Texas, was sentenced on January 22, 2016, in federal district court, in East St. Louis, Illinois, for one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute More than Five Kilograms of Cocaine, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, James L. Porter, announced today.

Harden was sentenced to 120 months in prison, 5 years of supervised release, fined $750, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment. Court proceedings revealed that on October 21, 2010, a confidential informant told DEA agents that Harden was in the St. Louis area with a large amount of cocaine for sale. DEA agents tracked Harden down and on October 22, 2010, observed Harden leave an O’Fallon home with a plastic shopping bag. Harden then went to another residence in Swansea, Illinois, where he left with a black bag. Shortly thereafter, the Fairview Heights Police Department conducted a traffic stop on Harden at the direction of the DEA agents. Harden sped off, driving into a residential area and throwing items out of the window, as witnessed by officers. Approximately 4 kilograms of cocaine were seized by officers. Harden was placed under arrest and later admitted to possessing a total of 7 kilograms of cocaine.

Evidence in support of this prosecution was obtained in an investigation which was conducted under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF initiative is designed to bring federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and resources together to identify, target and dismantle large national and international drug trafficking organizations. Agencies participating in this case include the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Fairview Heights Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel T. Kapsak.