TRENTON
– Attorney General Anne Milgram announced
that two men, including a member of the Bloods
street gang, were sentenced to life plus 15
years in state prison after being convicted
of running a drug ring that sold cocaine,
methamphetamine and prescription narcotics
in South Jersey.
Gary R. Maddox, 33, of Washington
Township, Gloucester County, and Jason E.
McKinnon, 33, of Atco, were each ordered by
Superior Court Judge Lee A. Solomon in Camden
County to serve life plus 15 years in state
prison, with 30 years of parole ineligibility.
Maddox and McKinnon were convicted on June
11 by a Camden County jury of first-degree
charges of racketeering and leading a drug
trafficking network, according to Division
of Criminal Justice Director Deborah L. Gramiccioni.
Maddox, a known member of
the Bloods street gang, was also convicted
of first-degree distribution of cocaine, and
McKinnon was convicted of first-degree possession
of cocaine with intent to distribute. In addition,
they were convicted of various second- and
third-degree charges.
“These lengthy sentences
illustrate our resolve to target the leaders
of drug networks and prosecute them to the
full extent of the law,” said Attorney
General Milgram. “This is an excellent
example of how the Division of Criminal Justice
and State Police are partnering with other
law enforcement agencies to shut down criminal
enterprises.”
The verdict followed a month-long
trial before Superior Court Judge Solomon.
Deputy Attorney General Russell Curley tried
the case for the Division of Criminal Justice
Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau.
The men were indicted on Sept.
6, 2007 as the result of a joint investigation
by the New Jersey State Police, the Division
of Criminal Justice and the U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration.
The investigation uncovered
a drug trafficking network that distributed
several ounces of powder cocaine per week,
as well as crack cocaine, methamphetamine,
OxyContin and other narcotics.
“The outcome of this
investigation and subsequent prosecution is
a tribute to the superb work of the New Jersey
State Police, the DEA, the U.S. Attorney’s
Office and our attorneys in the Division of
Criminal Justice,” said Director Gramiccioni.
“We will continue to partner with law
enforcement agencies across jurisdictional
lines in our fight against drug and gun trafficking
in New Jersey.”
The ring, under the leadership of Maddox and
McKinnon, obtained large quantities of powder
cocaine, typically a kilogram at a time, which
other defendants assisted in selling. Some
of the powder cocaine was processed or “cooked”
into crack cocaine at a house in Voorhees.
Maddox obtained OxyContin, Percocet, methadone,
Xanax and other narcotics using prescriptions
obtained illegally from numerous sources,
including doctors, pharmacists and drug addicts.
Maddox and McKinnon were arrested
in January 2007, when State Police detectives
and DEA agents made arrests and executed search
warrants in South Jersey and South Tucson,
Arizona. McKinnon is Maddox’s brother
through adoption.
The indictment also charged
Maddox’s live-in girlfriend, Lori M.
Gephart, 34, Gerald Foster, 23, of Atco, and
Charles E. Muldrow, 22, of Atco. Foster pleaded
guilty to first-degree racketeering and was
sentenced to seven years in state prison.
Muldrow pleaded guilty to second-degree distribution
of cocaine and was sentenced to six years
in state prison, including two years without
possibility of parole. Gephart was sentenced
on July 24 to five years in state prison.
The U.S. Attorney’s
Office in Camden prosecuted additional defendants
arrested in January 2007.
Deputy Attorney General Curley
worked with detectives from the drug trafficking
unit of the New Jersey State Police’s
Organized Crime Control South Bureau and agents
of the DEA who conducted the investigation.
The jury also found Maddox
guilty of conspiracy (2nd degree), distribution
of methamphetamine (2nd degree), money laundering
(3rd degree), possession of cocaine (3rd degree),
and distribution of cocaine within 1,000 feet
of a school.
McKinnon was also found guilty
of conspiracy (2nd degree), possession of
cocaine with intent to distribute (2nd degree),
possession of a handgun during commission
of a drug crime (2nd degree), and possession
of a handgun by a convicted felon (2nd degree).
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