Sharon Cocaine Kingpin Sentenced to 5.4 Years for Trafficking and Firearms Violations

A Sharon, Pennsylvania, resident has been handed a lengthy prison sentence for his role in a cocaine trafficking ring, along with firearm violations.

United States Senior District Judge Joy Flowers Conti sentenced Raymond Briskey, 38, to 65 months in federal prison after he pleaded guilty to possessing with intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base on October 21, 2020, and to possessing a firearm in furtherance of that drug trafficking crime.

The sentence was handed down on [date] in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and will be followed by three years of supervised release. Briskey’s crimes were uncovered as part of an investigation into a larger cocaine trafficking operation.

Assistant United States Attorney Craig W. Haller prosecuted this case on behalf of the United States, with the Mercer County Drug Task Force, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives providing key assistance in the investigation.

Briskey had outstanding bench warrants for failures to appear to address drug trafficking and theft charges in two counties in Ohio and to be sentenced for contraband and drug convictions in two cases in Mercer County, Pennsylvania, at the time of his crimes.

The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program aimed at reducing violent crime and gun violence by bringing together law enforcement and community leaders to set focused and strategic enforcement priorities.

United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan commended the efforts of the law enforcement agencies involved in the case, stating that their work has made the community safer for everyone.

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