Aloysius Korieocha, Heroin and Fentanyl Conspiracy, Louisiana 2024

A 37-year-old Eastside Hollygrove man tied to one of New Orleans’ most active drug rings has been locked up for a decade. Aloysius Korieocha, a/k/a “Madi,” a/k/a “Ball,” was sentenced today to ten years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin and a quantity of fentanyl.

U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance handed down the sentence, which includes ten years of imprisonment followed by five years of supervised release. The conviction marks a significant blow to a network that flooded the city’s Eastside Hollygrove neighborhood—known on the streets as “The Zoo”—with deadly narcotics.

Court records reveal Korieocha conspired with seven others: Jonathan LAWRENCE, Brandon HALL, Donald MARCELIN, Brian MAXSON, Dwayne LABRANCH, Lance STOVALL, and Vonzo MAGEE. Together, they formed a tight-knit drug-trafficking organization that used coded language, encrypted communications, and street-level runners to distribute heroin and fentanyl across New Orleans.

The name “The Zoo” wasn’t just slang—it was a brand, rooted in a rap video filmed in the neighborhood and embraced by the crew as an identity. Law enforcement dismantled the operation through controlled buys, Title III wiretaps, witness testimony, and multiple drug seizures, linking each defendant directly to the distribution chain.

All eight members have pleaded guilty. Korieocha is the first to be sentenced, but prosecutors indicate sentencing hearings for the others are imminent. The case underscores the federal crackdown on fentanyl-laced drug networks responsible for a surge in overdose deaths across Louisiana.

The investigation was led by the FBI New Orleans Gang Task Force (NOGFT), with critical support from the Drug Enforcement Administration, New Orleans Police Department, St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brandon S. Long, David Haller, and Edward Rivera are prosecuting the case.

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