New York City Man Sentenced For Smuggling Fake Ecstasy Pills

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

BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Stevie Coates, 41, of New York, N.Y., who was convicted of smuggling goods into the United States, was sentenced to 36 months imprisonment by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank T. Pimentel, who handled the case, stated that in the afternoon of October 31, 2010, the defendant drove his vehicle to the Lewiston Bridge Port of Entry seeking entry into the United States from Canada.  At secondary inspection, Customs and Border Protection officers discovered nearly 6,000 pills, which had the appearance of MDMA (or “ecstasy”) pills.  While subsequent laboratory analysis determined that the pills only contained caffeine, the defendant admitted that he planned to sell the pills for $20 apiece on return to New York City.

The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge J. Michael Kennedy, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, under the direction of Rose Hilmey, Acting Director of Field Operations.