A federal jury in Orlando, Florida, has convicted a Virgin Islands man of a multi-kilogram cocaine conspiracy.
Avery Lans (55, Virgin Islands) faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years, and up to life, in federal prison.
Lans was found guilty of conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
The verdict comes after Lans was arrested on June 1, 2022, when he attempted to flee from agents with the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) after dropping a duffle bag containing five kilograms of cocaine out of his passenger side window.
The duffle bag was later found to contain cocaine wrapped in black tape with a marking on it, and the storage locker from which Lans had retrieved the bag contained three coolers with 109 kilograms of cocaine, some of which had the same black and gold marking.
The estimated value of the cocaine in the duffle bag was $135,000, while the storage locker contained cocaine valued at nearly $3 million.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Orlando Police Department, the Sunrise Police Department, and the Golden Beach Police Department.
The sentencing hearing for Lans is scheduled for December 5, 2022.
Avery Lans and his conspirator, Wayne Ellsworth Stout, Jr. (35, Miami), were indicted on June 15, 2022. Stout pleaded guilty on August 19, 2022.
Related Federal Cases
- Avery Jones-Neal, Cocaine Distribution, Florida 2023 · Arkansas
- Elias Xavier Rosario Torres, Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Cocaine, Florida 2024 · Georgia
- Peter Dimitrov Mirchev, Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine, California 2023 · New York
- Deandre Marqui Gray, Cocaine Conspiracy, TX 2016 · Texas
- Piero Lubo-Barros, Cocaine Conspiracy, USVI 2023 · New York
Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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