Skip to main content
Press Release

Brothers Sentenced for Participating in a Violent Drug Conspiracy

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Pennsylvania

PITTSBURGH - Two Pittsburgh-area brothers have been sentenced in federal court for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

On Friday, United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon imposed a sentence of imprisonment of 240 months, followed by five years of supervised release, on Keith Harris, 25, of Pittsburgh, Pa. She then imposed a sentence of imprisonment of 121 months, followed by five years of supervised release, on Gregory Harris, Jr., 27, of Homestead, Pa.

According to information presented to the court, both Keith and Gregory Harris conspired to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin, and used violence in the course of the drug trafficking conspiracy. Keith Harris played a major role in the conspiracy, and Gregory Harris, Jr. possessed a firearm.

Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Bissoon concluded that Keith Harris was responsible for between one and three kilograms of heroin, which she called an addictive and deadly poison that he chose to sell on the street for profit. Judge Bissoon concluded that Gregory Harris, Jr. was responsible for between 400 and 700 grams of heroin, and she noted that he turned his back on the opportunities given to him. Judge Bissoon also specifically credited the testimony of a victim who testified at trial that both Keith and Gregory Harris physically assaulted and injured him during the heroin conspiracy.

Assistant United States Attorneys Conor Lamb and Ryan Hart prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office, the Munhall Police Department, and the Pennsylvania State Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of the Harris brothers. The investigation was funded by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program (OCDETF). The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.

Updated February 29, 2016

Topic
Drug Trafficking