Kevin Tyler Pleads to Drug Conspiracy Charge

Kevin Tyler, age 36, a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine hydrochloride before the Honorable Stanwood Duval, Jr., announced U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente.

According to the court record, Tyler’s charges stem from a Drug Enforcement Administration 2009 investigation of an illegal drug distributor named William Stevenson. During the course of the investigation, agents learned that Stevenson conspired with several others to obtain wholesale supplies of heroin, and Stevenson also conspired with Mark Ross, Tyler, and others to acquire quantities of cocaine hydrochloride. In August 2009, Tyler was the source of a kilogram of cocaine hydrochloride for Stevenson’s cousin. Earlier in 2009, Tyler arranged for another of Stevenson’s drug associates, Alvin Barnes, and two other men to conduct a multiple kilogram cocaine deal at a house in Spring, Texas. Texas law enforcement intervened before the deal could take place and confiscated almost $400,000 from the house. Of the money confiscated, $100,000 was Stevenson’s that he had given to Barnes to purchase four kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride.

Tyler was the last defendant to be adjudicated guilty in this multi-defendant case, having been a fugitive from his initial indictment on November 5, 2010 until August 2012. Tyler is scheduled to be sentenced on October 2, 2013. He faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life imprisonment on the conspiracy charge.

The case was investigated by DEA in collaboration with the Gulf Coast High Intensity Drug Trafficking Task Force (HIDTA) and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF is an important program that targets the most significant drug trafficking organizations within the United States, as well as those outside of the United States borders that impact drug trafficking within the United States.

Also assisting in the enforcement operations were the Louisiana State Police; Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office; Kenner Police Department; St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Pasadena, Texas Police Department; and the Harris County, Texas Sheriff’s Office.