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Ratanack Oung, Marijuana Distribution, Massachusetts 2017
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Ratanack Oung, Marijuana Distribution, Massachusetts 2017

A Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to four years in prison for his role in a large-scale marijuana distribution ring operating between California and Massachusetts.

BOSTON – Ratanack Oung, a/k/a Yoshi, 32, of Allentown, Penn., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to four years in prison and three years of supervised release. Oung pleaded guilty in April 2017 to one count of conspiracy to distribute marijuana and one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments.

In 2016, Oung was indicted on these charges along with co-conspirator Virayuth Chau, 40, of Temecula, Calif., who pleaded guilty in March 2017.

The investigation revealed that beginning around January 2014, Chau and Oung shipped large quantities of marijuana from California to the East Coast of the United States. When payment for the marijuana was due, Oung collected drug proceeds from co-conspirators and deposited the cash (typically in an amount under $10,000) into one of many ‘feeder’ accounts in banks on the East Coast, including in Massachusetts.

The ‘feeder’ accounts were maintained in the names of businesses or individuals associated with Chau in order to disguise the nature and ownership of the drug proceeds flowing into the accounts. In total, the operation distributed between 1,000 to 3,000 kilograms of marijuana and laundered approximately $6,135,035 in drug proceeds.

Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Michael J. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; and Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston, made the announcement today. The DEA, Los Angeles Division, Riverside County (California) Sheriff’s Department and Murrieta (California) Police Department also assisted with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Rosen of Weinreb’s Criminal Division prosecuted the case.