Levi Winston, Marijuana Trafficking, Ohio 2013

A Columbus man, 50, was sentenced Thursday to 135 months in federal prison for his role as a supplier in a large-scale drug-trafficking and money-laundering conspiracy in central Ohio.

Levi Winston pleaded guilty on May 2, 2013, to charges of conspiracy to possess and distribute more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana and money laundering. Judge Gregory L. Frost sentenced Winston to 135 months on each count and ordered the sentences to run concurrently.

"Mr. Winston’s conduct is that of bringing in a literal mountain of marijuana into the Southern District of Ohio," Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Hunter told the court. "His admitted relevant conduct is approximately 5,000 kilos of marijuana which has an approximate street value of between four- and four point five million dollars."

During the course of the investigation, a known drug trafficking organization transported several tons of marijuana from Mexico to central Ohio. Winston and his associates hid large quantities of the drugs inside tractor trailers and industrial machinery. On October 17, 2011, HSI special agents and task force conducted a controlled delivery of 1,798.12 pounds of marijuana to a warehouse that Winston had rented located in Gahanna, Ohio. Winston and several of his associates were later arrested on conspiracy to distribute illegal drug charges.

The HIDTA Task Force is operated as part of the Ohio Attorney General’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission. "We are pleased by the strong work coming out of this OOCIC task force to fight organized drug crimes," said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. "This is a clear example of successful teamwork between local, state, and federal agencies."

"This sentence emphasizes HSI’s mission to take down major trafficking organizations in our communities," said William Hayes, acting special agent in charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Detroit, which covers Michigan and Ohio. "HSI remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners to dismantle and disrupt these criminal conspiracies."

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