⏱ 3 min read
A notorious cocaine smuggler, once on the run as one of America’s Most Wanted, has got his punishment. Samuel Rose, 53, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was slapped with a 190-month sentence for his role in a massive multi-state drug trafficking operation.
Rose, who was caught and featured on the hit TV show after dodging authorities in 2021, was distributing large quantities of cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin from a Hagerstown warehouse that doubled as the operation’s headquarters.
The stash, hidden inside appliances, was worth a staggering $471,000. Rose was caught in 2024, a year after the indictment, and is still awaiting trial on other drug charges in Pennsylvania.
His sentencing comes on the heels of his boss, Lenin Luna Mota, who was sentenced to 280 months in October 2025. The operation has seen 33 of its 35 defendants convicted and sentenced to a combined 94 years in prison. Chelsea Nicole Pinkcett, 37, remains at large, with a $1,000 reward offered for her capture.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher led the prosecution, with help from the FBI, U.S. Marshals, Homeland Security, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms.
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📋 Key Facts
- Crime: Drug Trafficking
- Defendant: West Virginia
- Location: WV
- Source: DOJ Press Release
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