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Press Release

Maryland Man Sentenced to 102 Months in Prison for His Role in Drug Trafficking Organization

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Columbia
Ring Sold Cocaine and Other Narcotics in Washington, D.C. Area

            WASHINGTON - Bradley Cobbler, 35, of Hyattsville, Md., has been sentenced to 102 months in prison on a federal drug conspiracy charge stemming from his role in a drug trafficking ring that sold cocaine, marijuana, and other narcotics in the Washington, D.C. area.

 

            The announcement was made today by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Andrew W. Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Andre R. Watson, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Baltimore, and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

           Cobbler pled guilty in March 2017 to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana. He was sentenced on Jan. 29, 2018, by the Honorable Amit P. Mehta. Following his prison term, Cobbler will be placed on five years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, Cobbler and others participated in a conspiracy to distribute large amounts of narcotics between 2009 and 2014.  This case represented the end result of a more than three-year investigation into illegal drug distribution and other criminal activity which, in various capacities, involved or occurred in the District of Columbia and the States of Maryland, California, and Virginia.  This drug trafficking group mainly involved itself with trafficking very large quantities of marijuana, but also involved itself with redistributing various and significant quantities of heroin and cocaine hydrochloride (powder cocaine).  In that regard, during the conspiracy, California suppliers frequently sent – or conspired to send – large quantities of marijuana, heroin, or cocaine to the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, where the defendant and others participated in the illegal redistribution of one or more of the controlled substances to others in the Washington, D.C., area for profit.  

 

            Beginning sometime in 2011 and continuing until August 2014, Cobbler had an agreement to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana, and other narcotics, with various individuals in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, specifically including the District of Columbia and Prince George’s County, Md.

 

            Cobbler acknowledged that he and another co-defendant initially started pooling their money together to purchase marijuana from a California supplier and they traveled together on some occasions to California to facilitate drug deals. Cobbler also admitted that he gave quantities of narcotics to co-conspirator during 2014 for the purposes of redistribution to others. Other co-defendants then sold these narcotics.

 

            Cobbler was arrested on April 7, 2016 and has been in custody ever since. Several others previously pled guilty to charges in the investigation.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, Special Agent in Charge Watson, and Chief Newsham praised the work of the FBI Safe Streets Gang Task Force, which in this case involved work from the FBI, the Metropolitan Police Department, and HSI.  They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Prince George’s County, Md. Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Jeannette Litz and Teesha Tobias. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth F. Whitted, Andrea G. Duvall, and Emory V. Cole, who indicted and prosecuted the case.

 

Updated January 30, 2018

Topic
Drug Trafficking
Press Release Number: 18-24