United States Drug Enforcement Administration

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Kayla Hampton, age 28, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced in South Bend before United States District Court Judge Jon E. DeGuilio to 120 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Heroin, announced U.S. Attorney Thomas L. Kirsch II. 

According to documents in this case, a group of individuals sold heroin between March 2017 through October 2017 in the South Bend and Mishawaka area.  Members of the conspiracy shared cellphones to arrange heroin sales.  Each would receive pre-packaged heroin from someone in the conspiracy, and then sell it to customers who called the cell phone.  Hampton provided heroin and telephones to members of the group during part of those months, collected the proceeds from the sellers and occasionally sold heroin herself.  Individual sellers routinely sold ten grams within a few hours or less.  Hampton admitted she was responsible for distributing at least one kilogram of heroin, though the group was responsible for distributing over ten kilograms during the life of the conspiracy.  Hampton was previously convicted of kidnapping, and she engaged in this heroin distribution conspiracy while awaiting sentencing in that case. 

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration with the assistance from the St. Joseph County Drug Investigations Unit, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office, the Indiana State Police, and the Elkhart Police.  Assistant United States Attorneys Joel Gabrielse and Molly Donnelly handled the case.