Waldorf Drug Trafficker Sentenced to over 20 Years in Prison

From the DEA:

December 15, 2014
Contact: Public Information Officer
Number: 202-307-3936

Waldorf Drug Trafficker Sentenced to over 20 Years in Prison

DEC 15 (GREENBELT, Md.) - U.S. District Judge George J. Hazel sentenced John David White, age 42, of Waldorf, Maryland today to 248 months in prison, followed by four years of supervised release, for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and heroin, possession and attempt to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and heroin, maintaining a drug-involved premises and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

The sentence was announced by Special Agent in Charge Karl C. Colder of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Field Division; United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Colonel Michael Kundrat, Chief of the Maryland Transportation Authority Police; Chief Mark A. Magaw of the Prince George’s County Police Department; Charles County Sheriff Troy Berry; and Chief Mark Fronterotta of the Inglewood, California Police Department.
 
According to evidence presented at the six-day trial, from at least August 2010 through June 6, 2013, White purchased illegal narcotics in California and shipped the drugs to Maryland for distribution.  During this time period, White sent shipments from the East Coast to California via FedEx and private freight carriers.  In April 2011, law enforcement intercepted one of the shipments and found $30,000 in vacuum sealed packaging.  The evidence further established that from August 2010 through May 2013, White sent 25 shipments, weighing at least 140 pounds each, from California to Maryland, through several private freight carriers.

On May 28, 2013, law enforcement intercepted a crate shipment from California to a self-storage facility in Hyattsville, Maryland.  Hidden inside a toaster oven within the crate were two bricks of cocaine weighing over two kilograms.  The next day, a freight shipping company delivered the crate to the storage unit which was leased to White and a company that he controlled called City Urban. Later that same day, White arrived at the storage facility, unlocked his storage unit, pushed the crate inside and then closed his storage unit.  As White attempted to leave the storage facility, he was arrested.

Law enforcement executed a search warrant on May 30, 2013 at White’s storage unit and found several empty crates; packaging material; two digital scales; metal measuring spoons, one of which had heroin residue; and three plastic bags containing approximately 185 grams of heroin.  Law enforcement later executed a search at White’s residence on June 6, 2013, and seized $7,967; a .45 caliber pistol; ammunition; drug paraphernalia that contained heroin residue; and numerous cell phones, at least two of which contained text messages, in coded language, regarding the purchase and sale of narcotics.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the DEA, Maryland Transportation Authority Police, Prince George’s County Police Department, Charles County Sheriff’s Office and Inglewood, California, Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicolas Mitchell and Adam Ake, who prosecuted the case.

Saco Attorney Sentenced to Two Years for Money Laundering Conspiracy

From the DEA:

December 16, 2014
Contact: Public Information Officer
Number: 617-557-2138

Saco Attorney Sentenced to Two Years for Money Laundering Conspiracy

DEC 16 (PORTLAND, Maine) - Michael J. Ferguson, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England and United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Gary Prolman, Esq., 52, of Saco, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Judge George Z. Singal to two years in prison and two years of supervised release for conspiracy to launder $177,500 worth of marijuana trafficking proceeds.  Prolman pleaded guilty on April 29, 2014.

            According to court records, between 2011 and October 2013, David Jones and others illegally distributed hundreds of pounds of marijuana in Maine and elsewhere. Between June and September 2012, Prolman laundered about $177,500 worth of those drug proceeds by: (1) taking cash from Jones to purchase an interest in Prolman’s sports agency business; (2) illegally structuring cash deposits and cashier’s check purchases to avoid federal currency reporting requirements; and (3) using structured cashier’s checks to jointly purchase real estate with Jones in a transaction where only Prolman’s name appeared on the deed as the owner. 

            Prolman received three separate $50,000 cash installment payments, largely consisting of low denomination bills delivered in a backpack.  When Prolman attempted to deposit more than $10,000 from the first $50,000 installment into bank accounts he controlled, a bank teller advised him of the federal currency reporting requirement for deposits exceeding $10,000.  Under federal law, financial institutions that receive more than $10,000 in cash from a customer are required to report the transaction to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  Structuring occurs when a customer breaks up cash transactions into multiple increments of less than $10,000 to avoid this cash transaction reporting requirement.  Structuring is illegal under federal law and is commonly associated with the laundering of drug proceeds.  After being advised of the reporting requirement by the bank teller, Prolman structured numerous cash deposits and paid $60,409 to close the joint real estate purchase using seven structured cashier’s checks. 
           

            This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and the IRS, and resulted from the ongoing effort of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.