Baltimore Heroin Distributors Sentenced to Decades in Prison

Baltimore, Maryland – A pair of Baltimore heroin distributors have been handed prison sentences that could keep them behind bars for over a decade. George Trent, 28, and Kendrick Kelly, 38, were both sentenced to at least ten years in federal prison for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute and possess heroin.

U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett imposed the sentences, which included 12 years for Trent and 10 years for Kelly, each followed by five years of supervised release. The sentences were announced on January 4th and 3rd, respectively, by United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the FBI, Baltimore Field Office; and Commissioner Kevin Davis of the Baltimore Police Department.

According to their plea agreements, Trent and Kelly conspired with Courtney Barrett and others between April 2015 and April 2016. They met at a St. Paul Street apartment, where they processed heroin by mixing it with cutting agents and encapsulating it for redistribution in the city. Over several months, they produced thousands of gel capsules each week.

The pair later shifted operations to an apartment on Battery Avenue. On April 7, 2016, police executed a search warrant after seeing Trent and Kelly entering and exiting the building. They discovered more than a kilogram of heroin hidden in and around the apartment, as well as items used in the drug processing, such as cutting agents and empty gel capsules.

Together with their conspirators, Trent and Kelly admitted to distributing over three kilograms of heroin during the conspiracy period. Courtney Barrett, 30, from Woodlawn, Maryland, has also pleaded guilty to his part in the conspiracy and is set for sentencing on January 18th.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI and the Baltimore Police Department for their efforts in the investigation, thanking Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew C. Sullivan for his prosecution of the case.