Felon Convicted at Trial for Federal Cocaine Distribution Conspiracy and Illegal Possession of a Firearm

Greenbelt, Maryland – A federal jury today convicted James Ronnell Davis, a/k/a Twin, Slim and Slick, age 41, of Springfield, Virginia, for a cocaine distribution conspiracy, two counts of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, and for being a felon in possession of a firearm. 

The conviction was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Acting Special Agent in Charge Scott Hoernke of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Field Office; Chief Henry P. Stawinski III of the Prince George’s County Police Department; and St. Mary’s County Sheriff Timothy K. Cameron.

According to the evidence presented at Davis’s ten-day trial, from 2009 through at least 2017, Davis conspired with Adrian Carlos Washington, a/k/a AD; Jamila Kibibi Hargrove, a/k/a Ms. Bossy; Lonnell Staton, a/k/a Papi Chulo, and others to distribute hundreds of kilograms of cocaine.  Specifically, the evidence showed that Davis ran the drug conspiracy from his solely owned business, Shades, Suds and Sounds LLC (SS&S), initially located in Temple Hills, Maryland, which relocated to Capitol Heights, Maryland.  SS&S provided services including car detailing, window tinting services, and audio/alarm installations, among other things, as well as purchasing vehicles from auto auctions for resale.

The evidence showed that during the course of the conspiracy, Davis used SS&S as a front to distribute cocaine, receiving deliveries of kilograms of cocaine at the business from his source of supply, and providing that cocaine to customers at SS&S and elsewhere.  Davis and his co-defendants used disposable, prepaid cellular telephones, commonly referred to as “burner phones,” and frequently switched phones in an effort to thwart law enforcement.  During the investigation, law enforcement intercepted and monitored telephone calls and text messages to and from phones used by Davis and his co-conspirators. 

Search warrants executed at Davis’s business and residence and those of his co-conspirators resulted in the seizure of numerous cellular telephones, over $200,000 in cash, and 40 kilograms of cocaine, as well as packaging material, digital scales, and other drug paraphernalia.

Co-defendants Adrian Carlos Washington, a/k/a AD, age 43, of Oxon Hill, Maryland; Jamila Kibibi Hargrove, a/k/a Ms. Bossy, age 42, of Washington, D.C.; and Lonnell Staton, a/k/a Papi Chulo, age 38, of Washington, D.C., previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the conspiracy.  Washington is scheduled to be sentenced on November 29, 2018, at 3:00 p.m.; and Hargrove and Staton are scheduled to be sentenced on January 7, 2019, at 10:00 a.m.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime.

United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the FBI, the DEA, the Prince George’s County Police Department, and the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicolas A. Mitchell and Catherine K. Dick, who are prosecuting the case.

# # #