Markeese Askew, Drug Trafficking, Pennsylvania 2020

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Philadelphia Man Sentenced to 192 Months for Drug Trafficking

WILLIAMSPORT, PA – In a shocking turn of events, Markeese Askew, a 28-year-old resident of Philadelphia, was sentenced to 192 months’ imprisonment followed by a six-year term of supervised release by U.S. District Court Judge Matthew W. Brann on conspiring to distribute heroin and a mixture of heroin and carfentanil in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Askew pleaded guilty in October 2020 to the above-mentioned charge. During a three-day period in June 2017, there was a rash of drug overdoses in Williamsport. At the time, UPMC Susquehanna in Williamsport and Wellsboro reported treating 51 such cases within a 48-hour period.

Two of Askew’s co-conspirators, Wayne Davidson and Nathan Crowder, also pleaded guilty in October 2020 to the same charge. They were both sentenced to 210 months’ imprisonment in March 2021. Raymond Howard was convicted after a five-day jury trial and awaits sentencing.

In total, Askew and the three co-conspirators were charged with delivering a mixture of heroin and carfentanil that resulted in serious bodily injury to eight individuals.

The case was investigated by the Lycoming County District Attorney’s Office Narcotics Enforcement Unit, Montoursville Police Department, Old Lycoming Township Police Department, South Williamsport Police Department, Williamsport Bureau of Police, Pennsylvania State Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Alisan V. Martin and Geoffrey W. MacArthur prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The PSN program was reinvigorated in 2017 as part of a renewed focus on targeting violent criminals.

This case was also brought as part of a district-wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin-related offenses.

Mandatory Facts: Defendant’s full name: Markeese Askew, Exact criminal charges: conspiring to distribute heroin and a mixture of heroin and carfentanil, City and state: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Exact date: 2020, Sentence or outcome: 192 months’ imprisonment followed by a six-year term of supervised release, Dollar amounts: None available.