United States Drug Enforcement Administration

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Sukita M Williams, 44, of Las Vegas, Nevada, and Hilliard, Ohio, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 72 months in prison for her role in a criminal organization that illegally trafficked the prescription painkiller oxycodone, between Las Vegas, Nevada, and Columbus, Ohio.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s Detroit Division, Troy N. Stemen, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue (IRS) Criminal Investigation, and Christopher White, Assistant Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection (USPIS) announced the sentence handed down today by U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson.

Williams is one of six defendants to be sentenced in this case on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone and/or conspiracy to commit money laundering. They include:

• Danny R. Williams, 30, of Las Vegas, who was sentenced in July to 90 months in prison;
• Dontonyo Courtney, 22, of Columbus, who was sentenced in August to 33 months in prison;
• Alfred D. James, Sr., 36, of Columbus, was sentenced in September to 30 months in prison;
• Joqulin Harris, 29, of Columbus, who was sentenced in September to five years of probation;
• Rashod D. Todd, 29, of Columbus, who was sentenced in October to 70 months in prison.

Two defendants are still awaiting sentencing in this case.  Tiauna Castro, 28, of Las Vegas, pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy to commit money laundering and is scheduled to be sentenced on July 12, 2017.  Larissa Harris-Patterson, 46, of Las Vegas, pleaded guilty in November to charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Her sentencing is yet to be scheduled.

According to court documents, between 2012 and November 2015, Sukita Williams, Danny Williams and Rashod Todd conspired to import, possess and distribute Oxycodone from Las Vegas. Sukita and Danny Williams each personally went to physicians to obtain fraudulent prescriptions for oxycodone and arranged for other members of the conspiracy to do the same.  Once they obtained bulk amounts of oxycodone, the pills were transported to Columbus, Ohio, via the mail or on commercial airlines to be sold on the street to drug users.

The three attempted to conceal their illicit proceeds by depositing money into others’ bank accounts. In addition, these cash deposits funded the purchase of airline tickets that enabled couriers to transport oxycodone to Columbus and to transport bulk amounts of cash back to Las Vegas.

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the DEA, IRS, USPIS and Ohio Bureau of Criminal (BCI), as well as Deputy Criminal Chief Michael J. Hunter, who is representing the United States in these cases.