Defendant Sentenced in Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Operation
| U.S. Attorney’s Office March 06, 2013 |
RALEIGH—United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that in federal court on March 6, 2013, Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever, III, sentenced Kenneth Harris, 25, of Wilmington, North Carolina, to 120 months’ imprisonment, followed by three years’ supervised release.
On May 8, 2012, a federal grand jury returned a criminal indictment charging Harris. On December 3, 2012, Harris pled guilty to distributing a quantity of heroin.
According to the course of the investigation, on September 26, 2011, the Wilmington Police Department made an undercover purchase of a quantity of heroin from Harris. In addition, two co-defendants, Linwood Nelson and Kathy Mishoe, were transporting heroin to Harris and another co-conspirator for distribution in the New Hanover County area. Between November, 2011 and February, 2012, the group imported more than 16,500 bags of heroin from New Jersey.
On March 26, 2012, the Wilmington Police Department stopped a rental car in which Mishoe was the driver and Nelson a passenger.
The vehicle was returning from New Jersey to Wilmington, North Carolina. Detectives found 7,500 bags of heroin that were to be delivered to Harris and another co-conspirator for distribution.
Both Nelson and Mishoe were charged in the conspiracy and were sentenced on January 13, 2013 and January 29, 2013, respectively.
Nelson was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment, and Mishoe received a 36-month sentence.
This case was brought as a part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation entitled WoofPack, investigating importers and multi-level distributors of heroin, powder cocaine, crack cocaine, and gang activity associated with this distribution. Thus far, 31 persons have been sentenced in federal court as a part of this operation.
Investigation of this OCEDTF case is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (Safe Streets Task Force); the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations; the Wilmington Police Department; the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office; and the Greenville Police Department. Special Assistant United States Attorney Timothy Severo represents the government. Mr. Severo is a prosecutor with the New Hanover District Attorney’s Office.
District Attorney Ben David has assigned him to the United States Attorney’s Office to prosecute federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force criminal matters.