Arizona Man Pleads Guilty To Drug Charges

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Shane Grafman, 33, of Phoenix, AZ, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, five kilograms or more of cocaine and 100 kilograms or more of marijuana, and money laundering conspiracy, was sentenced to 108 months by Senior U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who is handling the case, stated that in April 2009, Shane Grafman and co-defendant Jordan Ali began assisting one another in their drug distribution businesses. The defendants obtained the narcotics in the State of Arizona, and then utilized several methods to send the marijuana and cocaine to the Buffalo area, including cars, trucks, shipping crates, and United States Postal Service parcels. Grafman also utilized private jets to travel from Arizona to Buffalo to pick-up his drug proceeds.

During the investigation, law enforcement officers seized approximately $1,000,000 in United States currency, including $671,385 from a hidden compartment within a Honda Ridgeline driven by Grafman.

A total of six defendants were arrested and convicted in this case. 

Today’s sentencing is the culmination of investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of James J. Hunt, Special Agent-in-Charge, New York Field Division; Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly; Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge James D. Robnett; United States Postal Service Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector-in-Charge Shelly Binkowski; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Adam Cohen; Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derenda; Erie County Sheriff's Department, under the direction of Sheriff Tim Howard; Niagara Frontier Transit Authority, under the direction of Chief George Gast; Tempe, Arizona Police Department; Apache County, Arizona Sheriff's Department; and the Oklahoma State Police.