CINCINNATI — A federal grand jury charged two men Wednesday in a “narcotics conspiracy” that involved police seizing more than $500,000, a kilogram of fentanyl, guns, luxury watches and more, according to U.S. Attorney David Devillers.
Forty-four-year-old Derrick Ferris of Cincinnati and 22-year-old Jose Antonio Garcia of Lynwood, California, stand charged with conspiring to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl and smuggling bulk cash, punishable by 10 years to life in prison.
Authorities with the Miami Valley Bulk Smuggling Task Force and Southern Ohio Bulk Smuggling-Major Drug Interdiction Task Force seized 1 kilo of fentanyl and more than $500,000 in cash as part of their investigation.
The task forces are part of the Ohio Attorney General’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission.
Between May and August of this year, Garcia and Ferris, also known as Kelvin Croom, smuggled bulk cash out of the country with the intent to evade a currency reporting legal requirement, according to the indictment.
If convicted, the pair would have to forfeit more than $500,000 in cash, two gold Rolex watches, two gold chains, three handguns and ammunition that authorities found.
According to the U.S. attorney’s office, bulk cash smuggling is a federal crime punishable by up to five years in prison.
