Two Eastside Hollygrove street figures, Jonathan Lawrence, a/k/a “Chop,” a/k/a “Mego,” 32, and Vonzo Magee, a/k/a “Zo,” a/k/a “Dark Low,” 31, both of New Orleans, have copped to federal drug and gun charges that paint a brutal picture of life in one of the city’s most violent corridors. Their guilty pleas, entered yesterday, expose a criminal enterprise built on heroin, fentanyl, and loaded firearms.
LAWRENCE admitted to one count of conspiring to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl; one count of conspiring to possess firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking; and one count of discharging a firearm in a school zone. On the drug conspiracy, he faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison, a maximum of life, up to a $20,000,000 fine, and at least ten years of supervised release. The firearm conspiracy carries up to 20 years, a $250,000 fine, and three years supervised release. Discharging a firearm in a school zone adds up to 5 years, $100,000 in fines, and one year of supervision.
MAGEE pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. On the drug charge, he faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years, a maximum of 40 years, a fine up to $5,000,000, and at least four years of supervised release. The felon-in-possession count brings up to 10 years, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervision.
The charges stem from a coordinated crackdown by the FBI New Orleans Gang Task Force (NOGFT), which has been methodically dismantling narcotics networks in the city’s hardest-hit neighborhoods. Evidence gathered during the investigation revealed a pattern of drug distribution and armed retaliation, with violence bleeding into areas meant to be safe—like school zones—where Lawrence is accused of firing a weapon.
U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser did not mince words, crediting the FBI-led task force and its partners—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—for ripping the cover off a dangerous operation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brandon S. Long, David Haller, and Edward Rivera are prosecuting the case.
Sentencing is set for August 7, 2019, before U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance. With mandatory minimums and stacked charges, both men are staring down decades behind bars. In a city where the streets whisper names like ‘Chop’ and ‘Zo’ with fear, yesterday’s pleas mark another crack in the foundation of organized street crime.
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Key Facts
- State: Louisiana
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Weapons|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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