A man from Springfield had been sentenced to 11 years and three months (135 months) behind bars on account of internet mail drug distribution, that is, buying and selling illicit drugs online utilizing the U.S. Mail. The accused had been identified as Sheldon Kennedy aged 32 years and he had been sentenced by the U.S. District Court Judge R. Stan Baker.
The accused had pleaded guilty to:
- Possessing bearing the intent to distribute tapentadol (a synthetic opioid)
- Utilizing the communications facility that is the U.S. Mail.
- Possessing ammunition by a convicted felon.
These charges had been confirmed by Bobby L. Christine of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.
The sentencing under the internet mail drug distribution case, also states that after he completes his prison term, he has to serve three years of supervised release and that there is absolutely no parole listed in the federal system.
“Sheldon Kennedy clearly didn’t learn his lesson the first time he went to prison as an illegal drug distributor,” Christine said. “Years behind bars will protect the community from his poison.”
The court documents and testimony describe that Kennedy (the accused) had previously spent time in the prison owing to his conviction for the drug trafficking through the notorious dark web market Silk Road.
The accused had also drawn the attention of the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) back in August 2019 due to the suspicious international and domestic shipments that were routed via the various addresses, drop boxes and airports.
On September 16, 2019, the accused under the internet mail drug distribution case had been arrested during a traffic stop. While a subsequent search was carried out at his residence, the investigators had seized miscellaneous pills numbering over thousands along with memory devices and computers. Apart from these, ammunition, an AR-style rifle and packaging and shipment materials have also been found. The agents were successful in intercepting several packages containing controlled substances that were shipped via the post offices in Savannah and Springfield.
Here is the official complaint of Kennedy:
“This case highlights that if the mail is involved, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and its law enforcement partners will tirelessly work to track down suspects near and far, even through the perceived anonymity of the Dark Web, to bring them to justice,” said Antonio Gomez, inspector in charge of the Miami division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
“Criminals can’t hide from justice even on the dark web,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees HSI operations in Georgia and Alabama.
“Kennedy’s tangled web that distributed poison, helping fuel the opioid crisis, is thankfully dismantled and I am proud of the great work done in this case by HSI and its federal, state and local partners,” Berger said.
“This case provides a prime example of the results of collaboration between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies who all have a common goal of protecting the American public,” said Donald F. Yando, Atlanta Customs and Border Protection Director of Field Operations. “CBP is proud to be involved in these efforts to keep drugs off the streets.”
The Chatham County Sheriff’s Office had helped massively in the investigation. Organized Crime Drug Task Force Coordinator Marcela C. Mateo and Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Pennington had prosecuted the internet mail drug distribution case.
Source: Savannah Now
Disclaimer: Read the complete disclaimer here.
