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Quijuan Hosea Bankhead, Fentanyl Trafficking, Minnesota 2023
A deadly fentanyl trafficking scheme has come to an end in Minnesota with the sentencing of a St. Paul man. Quijuan Hosea Bankhead, 31, was sentenced to 120 months imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to his part in the conspiracy.
According to court documents, Bankhead and others conspired to distribute fentanyl in the Twin Cities and throughout Minnesota between August 2022 and December 2023. To accomplish their scheme, several of the co-defendants traveled to Phoenix to obtain fentanyl pills from suppliers, hid the pills inside stuffed animals, and then mailed them to addresses in and around the Twin Cities.
Law enforcement in Dakota, Ramsey, and Washington counties became aware of the trafficking and initiated a joint investigation, which resulted in the seizure of six packages containing over 30,000 grams of fentanyl pills. Bankhead was sentenced on May 29, 2025, in U.S District Court before Judge Jeffrey M. Bryan.
“Bankhead and his network smuggled deadly fentanyl into Minnesota and had the gall to hide this poison inside of children’s toys—stuffed animals,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson. “Bankhead will now serve a well-deserved decade in federal prison.”
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the Dakota County Drug Task Force, the Washington County Drug Task Force, and the Ramsey County Violent Crime Enforcement Team.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Campbell Warner prosecuted the case, bringing the defendants to justice for their role in the fentanyl trafficking scheme. The sentence handed down to Bankhead serves as a warning to those who would seek to traffic deadly substances into our communities.
The people of Minnesota can rest a little easier knowing that Bankhead and his network are no longer on the streets. But this case also serves as a reminder that the war on fentanyl is far from over. Law enforcement agencies will continue to work tirelessly to disrupt and dismantle these trafficking networks, and we will do everything in our power to keep our communities safe.
The sentence in this case sends a strong message that fentanyl trafficking will not be tolerated in Minnesota. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute those who would seek to bring this deadly substance into our state.
Key Facts
- State: Minnesota
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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