17 indicted in multi-state drug trafficking & money laundering scheme involving Palm Springs airport
17 people have been indicted in a massive multi-state drug trafficking and money laundering scheme dating back six years.
So far, the Drug Enforcement Agency has seized more than 250 pounds of drugs (mostly methamphetamine and fentanyl), according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
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According to court records, over the course of the past six years, the Drug Enforcement Administration has been involved in an investigation into a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that operates largely out of Lake County, Florida, with sources of supply or distributors in California, Texas, the eastern United States, and China
Officials noted the drugs were mainly transported between airports in Orlando, Palm Springs, and Los Angeles. The organization operated largely through the use of couriers who fly to California from Florida with large sums of cash to purchase drugs and transport checked luggage full of drugs back to Florida on commercial flights.
"These flights were typically between the Orlando International Airport (MCO) in Florida and the Palm Springs Airport (PSP) or the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) in California. Flight records during a two-year period show more than 350 flights between California and Orlando among the various conspirators," the U.S. Attorney's Office wrote in a press release.
Officials said the organization also used couriers to transport large amounts of methamphetamine from Orlando to Virginia via train. In April 2022, one of these couriers was arrested at a train station in Virginia with approximately 10 pounds of methamphetamine inside a suitcase.
On the money laundering front, officials said a key aspect of this conspiracy was one of the member’s development of an entertainment business that he used to promote concerts with legitimate artists, whom he paid with drug proceeds. Poole then commingled the profits from the ticket sales with the drug proceeds in the same business account.
Each of the 17 defendants has played various roles in the drug trafficking and money laundering ring.
Multi-State Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering Conspiracy Defendant Chart
| Name (Age, Residence) | Charges | Potential Penalties |
| Dudzinski Edwinn Poole a/k/a “Zink”(48, Apopka, FL) | Possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine(two counts)Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Melvin Tyrone Patterson, Jr. a/k/a “Goon”(31, Wildwood, FL) | Possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine (two counts)Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Andrew Woodruff, Jr. a/k/a “Smurf”(38, Mount Dora, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Jose Ivan Carbajal a/k/a “Primo”(33, California) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Diego Navarro- Martinez a/k/a “Shooter”(32, California) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Michael Andre Chester a/k/a “Dre”(48, Apopka, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Samantha Tiesha King a/k/a “Mamp”(32, Altamonte Springs, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy Money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Felisha Denise Williams a/k/a “Lil Momma”(34, Apopka, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy Money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Rodrieka Lashay Manning a/k/a “Drieka”(25, Apopka, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Janice Denise Anderson a/k/a “Butter”(65, Mount Dora, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Oveda Denise Miller a/k/a “Gangsta Granny”(60, Mount Dora, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Roland Richardson(63, Mount Dora, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| Latonya Sharee Conley a/k/a “Hershey”(46, Mount Dora, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
| George Nelvin King, Jr.(46, Altamonte Springs, FL) | Drug trafficking conspiracy money laundering conspiracy | Mandatory minimum of 10 years up to life in prison |
