Greenbelt Felon Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Drug Charges and to Illegal Possession of a Firearm

Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George J. Hazel sentenced Lucian Bernard Jackson, age 53, of Greenbelt, Maryland, yesterday to 10 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Judge Hazel also ordered Jackson to forfeit the $81,957 in cash, two firearms and ammunition seized from his residence during a search of his residence.  This case was the result of investigative efforts by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the District of Maryland and for the Eastern District of Virginia. 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia G. Zachary Terwilliger, Special Agent in Charge Timothy Jones of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division; Special Agent in Charge Jesse R. Fong of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Field Division; and Interim Chief Hector Velez of the Prince George’s County Police Department; and Attorney General of Virginia Mark R. Herring.

“Drug traffickers must know that using a gun will lead to federal time, which has no parole—ever,” said United States Attorney Robert K. Hur.  “Lucian Jackson will now serve 10 years in federal prison.  We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to remove those who would deal drugs and commit violence from our community.”

According to his guilty plea, from June 2017 to September 2019, Jackson was a supplier of cocaine in and around the Maryland region, redistributing cocaine to local dealers.  For example, from October 2017 to September 2019, Jackson distributed approximately 500 grams of cocaine per week to a co-conspirator, with the transactions generally occurring at Jackson’s residence.  The co-conspirator then redistributed the cocaine to 30 or more customers.  The hierarchal distribution continued with the customers redistributing the cocaine around the region, including in the Eastern District of Virginia and in the District of Maryland.  In addition, Jackson occasionally purchased cocaine from other suppliers through the co-conspirator.  During one month, Jackson, through the co-conspirator, purchased approximately four kilograms of cocaine from another supplier.

Law enforcement executed a search warrant at Jackson’s residence in Greenbelt, Maryland, on September 26, 2019, and recovered: $81,957 in cash; more than 700 grams of cocaine; a .45-caliber pistol and 54 rounds of .45-caliber ammunition; a 9mm pistol and 114 rounds of 9mm ammunition; and an additional $400 in cash recovered from Jackson’s person.  Jackson admitted that the cash from the residence and Jackson’s person were proceeds from his cocaine distribution.  Further, Jackson admitted that he knew he was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition as a result of a previous felony conviction.

Jackson was personally involved in the distribution of, or it was reasonably foreseeable to Jackson that his co-conspirators distributed, in furtherance of the conspiracy, at least 50 kilograms but less than 150 kilograms, of cocaine.

As agreed upon in Jackson’s plea agreement, now that Jackson has been sentenced, related charges filed in federal court in the Eastern District of Virginia will be dismissed.

United States Attorneys Robert K. Hur and G. Zachary Terwilliger commended the ATF, and the Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the Maryland investigation and thanked the DEA, the FBI Washington Field Office, the Arlington County Police Department, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office, the Fairfax County Police Department, and the Alexandria Police Department for their work in the Virginia investigation.  Mr. Hur and Mr. Terwilliger thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Burden Walker and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Karolina Klyuchnikova, who prosecuted the Maryland and Virginia cases, respectively.

# # #