Women Plead Guilty to Participation in Marijuana Conspiracy Connected to the Murders of Three Men

ROCHESTER, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that two women have pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa to marijuana trafficking crimes. Danielle Cook, 37, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty on September 13 to a felony charge of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute marijuana. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Tenika Early, 28, of Columbus, OH, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana. That charge carries a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison, a fine of $2,000,000 or both

Assistant U.S. Attorney Everardo A. Rodriguez, who is handling the case, stated that the defendants were indicted in August 2010 along with six others for their participation in a marijuana distribution organization responsible for the large-scale distribution of marijuana in Rochester and Columbus, Ohio.

Three of the co-defendants in the case, who are awaiting further court proceedings, were also charged with murdering three men in Greece, New York on March 9, 2010, in furtherance of the marijuana conspiracy. Richard Anderson, Andrew Wright, and Aston Johnson are charged with murdering Robert Moncriffe, Mark Wisdom, and Christopher Green. Specifically, Anderson, Wright, and Johnson are charged with possessing and discharging firearms and murdering the three victims in furtherance of a marijuana conspiracy. The defendants are also charged with intentionally killing the three victims while engaged in the marijuana conspiracy.

Of the eight defendants, Cook and Early are the third and fourth to plead guilty.

The pleas are the result of an investigation by the Greece Police Department, under the direction of Chief Todd K. Baxter; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christopher M. Piehota; the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Matthew Renneman; Immigration of Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero; and the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief James Sheppard.

Danielle Cook will be sentenced on December 13, 2011. Tenika Early will be sentenced on December 14, 2011, both before Judge Siragusa.