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Johnell Lee Cleveland, Fentanyl Trafficking, Oregon 2018
PORTLAND, Ore.—A 57-month prison sentence was handed down to Johnell Lee Cleveland, 37, of Happy Valley, Oregon, for his role in distributing cyclopropyl fentanyl and possessing a machine gun.
Cleveland was sentenced to three years of supervised release after serving his prison term. According to court documents, the investigation into Cleveland’s activities began in March 2018, when the Portland Police Bureau, FBI, and IRS executed a series of search warrants on his residence in Happy Valley, a storage unit in Clackamas, Oregon, and a stash house in Vancouver, Washington.
During the search of Cleveland’s home, investigators seized $27,372 in cash, seven firearms, a ballistic vest, and more than 300 suspected oxycodone pills wrapped in two plastic baggies. One of the firearms seized was a fully-automatic machine gun with a drum magazine.
The investigation also uncovered a white Mercedes-Benz with exterior bullet holes believed to be involved in a December 2017 downtown Portland shooting that left one man critically injured. Cleveland is currently awaiting trial in Multnomah County Circuit Court for attempted murder with a firearm related to the December 2017 shooting.
Court documents revealed that the suspected oxycodone pills were, in fact, counterfeit pills made with cyclopropyl fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid. The total amount of cash seized from Cleveland’s storage unit and the Vancouver stash house was $124,040, along with more than 900 additional suspected oxycodone pills and over $100,000 worth of jewelry and Rolex watches.
Cleveland pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute cyclopropyl-fentanyl, one count of possessing a machine gun, and two counts of money laundering on March 22, 2019. As part of his plea, Cleveland agreed to abandon any interest in the seized firearms and forfeit all criminally-derived proceeds as identified by the government.
The case was investigated by the Portland Police Bureau, FBI, and IRS Criminal Investigation, and was prosecuted by Peter Sax and Benjamin Tolkoff, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.
Key Facts
- State: Oregon
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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