Eight men and one woman were indicted by a federal grand jury this week for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute heroin in Greene County, Mo.
Dangelo P. Moore, 30, of Willard, Mo., James D. Elbert, 36, Jerry R. Blue, 29, Keilan A. Murray, 25, and Presley A. Pike, 26, all of Springfield, Mo., Michael K. Johnson, Jr., 32, of Ozark, Mo., Rodriguez R. Bradley, 35, of Fordland, Mo., Kevin D. Paine, 28, of Cahokia, Ill., and Kewan J. Rogers, 35, of St. Louis, Mo., were charged in a 22-count superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Springfield. This week’s superseding indictment replaces the original indictment returned under seal on July 11, 2018, and adds Pike as a co-defendant.
This week’s indictment alleges that all nine of the defendants participated in a conspiracy to distribute at least 100 grams of heroin in Greene County from Oct. 2, 2015, to Nov. 13, 2017.
Elbert is also charged with one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime and one count of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition. Elbert allegedly was in possession of a Smith & Wesson .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol and an HS Products (Springfield Armory) .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol on April 24, 2017.
Paine is also charged with one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Paine allegedly was in possession of a Glock .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol on Jan. 5, 2017.
In addition to the drug-trafficking conspiracy, the remaining counts of the indictment allege specific instances in which various defendants distributed heroin.
The indictment also contains forfeiture allegations, which would require Moore, Elbert and Bradley to forfeit to the government a total of $34,332 and the various firearms and ammunition that were seized by law enforcement officers during the course of the investigation.
The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nhan D. Nguyen. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, IRS-Criminal Investigation, the Springfield, Mo., Police Department, the Greene County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department and the Ozark, Mo., Police Department.
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