Meth and Cocaine Drug Ringleader Sentenced to Prison
16 Additional Members of Trafficking Ring Previously Sentenced
EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. – A U.S. District Court judge sentenced an East St. Louis man to 16 years and six months in prison after he pled guilty to several drug charges for his involvement in a national trafficking ring as the Metro East St. Louis leader.
Jeffrey Taylor, 40, pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, distribution of cocaine, distribution of methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, attempted possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and money laundering.
According to court documents, Taylor ran operations in the drug organization, recruited members for illegal activities and provided direction. Sixteen co-defendants were also indicted in the conspiracy to various drug charges and have been sentenced from time served and supervised release up to 21 years and 10 months in federal prison. During the investigation, the defendants resided in East St. Louis, Washington Park and Wood River in Illinois, as well as California, Kansas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas.
The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the drug trafficking ring from February 2017 to August 2018 in Madison and St. Clair counties, primarily in East St. Louis. The conspiracy involved at least 240 pounds of ice methamphetamine and 48 kilograms of cocaine.
"This sentence concludes an investigation that perfectly represents DEA's mission," said Acting Assistant Special Agent in Charge Michael E. Rehg, head of DEA enforcement operations in southern Illinois. "We want the entire criminal drug organization, from the dealers to the highest level of distribution leadership, off our streets. Jeffrey Taylor and his entire network will not be putting his illegal products in our communities any longer."
DEA led the investigation, with contributions from the IRS, the Illinois State Police and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
