Operation Little Big Man Sends Two from Parsons to Federal Prison

KANSAS CITY, KS—Two more defendants charged during a federal drug trafficking investigation in southeast Kansas have been sentenced to federal prison, U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch said today.

Tony Washington, 29, Parsons, Kan., was sentenced to 300 months in federal prison. Elton Simmons, 31, Parsons, Kan., was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison.

In January 2009, a federal jury convicted Washington on one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute crack cocaine and marijuana, and one count of conspiracy to maintain a crack house at 1430 Appleton, Apt. B, in Parsons, Kan. During trial, prosecutors presented evidence Washington was part of a drug trafficking ring started by co-defendant Steve Logan in 2005 in Parsons. Logan supplied crack cocaine to other conspirators and sold it to other drug dealers and users. As the volume of Logan’s drug trafficking increased, he pooled his resources with Washington and others in order to purchase larger quantities of cocaine at a cheaper rate.

In sentencing Washington, the court found he had been involved in the distribution of more than 500 grams of crack cocaine during the conspiracy, possessed three firearms in connection with his drug trafficking, and supervised the activity of several individuals in carrying out the distribution of crack cocaine.

Elton Simmons pleaded guilty in January 2009 to one count of distributing crack cocaine. In his plea, he admitted he regularly obtained crack cocaine from Washington and distributed it to buyers. Simmons knew Washington from their childhood together in Mississippi. In the spring and summer of 2007, Simmons was selling up to $100 work of crack a day. In June 2007, Simmons was arrested when officers served a search warrant at 1430 Appleton in Parsons.

Welch recognized all the agencies that took part in Operation Little Big Man, an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force project targeting drug trafficking, armed robberies, shootings, abductions and money laundering in Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. He commended the Ottawa Police Department, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, the Parsons Police Department, the Labette County Sheriff’s Office, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask for their work on the case.