Oakland Ecstasy Trafficker Sentenced to Seven Years in Jail
Defendant Convicted of Unlawful Possession of Gun and Bulletproof Vest

OAKLAND, CA—Long Lam was sentenced yesterday to seven years in prison and three years of supervised release for trafficking MDMA, more commonly known as ecstasy, as well as for committing various firearms-related offenses, United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced.

Lam pleaded guilty on March 21, 2012 to a five-count indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute ecstasy, distribution of ecstasy, possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon, and unlawful possession of a bulletproof vest. During his plea hearing, Lam admitted that he sold ecstasy out of a restaurant in Oakland; Lam also admitted that he possessed a loaded firearm and bulletproof vest that were found at his residence when he was arrested as a result of the indictment. Other evidence offered by the prosecutor indicated that Lam had been overheard on a court-authorized wiretap engaging in ecstasy trafficking transactions involving a total of more than 20,000 pills.

Lam, 36, of Oakland, was indicted by a federal grand jury on July 15, 2008.

The case was the result of a multi-year operation dubbed Operation Triple Stack, led by the San Francisco offices of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a multi-agency task force that coordinates long-term narcotics trafficking investigations. The San Francisco Police Department and Oakland Police Department also participated in Operation Triple Stack, which targeted a group of ecstasy and marijuana traffickers. The investigation was conducted in coordination with related ecstasy trafficking investigations in Sacramento and Denver, resulting in the apprehension of more than 50 individuals nationwide. Lam is the last of 18 defendants indicted in the Northern District of California to be convicted and sentenced.

The seven-year sentence was handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton. Judge Hamilton also sentenced Lam to a three-year period of supervised release. Lam was taken into custody immediately after the hearing to begin serving his sentence.