Convicted Felon Sentenced to 8+ Years on Federal Charges
EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. – A district judge sentenced a felon from East St. Louis to eight years and one month in prison after he admitted to conspiring to launder money and distribute drugs in southern Illinois.
Donald B. Perkins, 37, pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering conspiracy, one count of conspiracy to distribute marijuana, one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and one count of felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents, Perkins conspired with a co-defendant to launder money to conceal drug proceeds by using cash exchanges and cashier’s checks. The pair are estimated to have laundered more than $1.2 million.
Byron Robinson, 60, of Florissant, Missouri, was also charged in the indictment with money laundering conspiracy and was sentenced to three years of probation in September 2023.
Law enforcement executed a search warrant on Perkins’s East St. Louis home in November 2021 and recovered more than 1,210 pounds of marijuana. While executing the search warrant, officers also found a pistol belonging to Perkins. As he was convicted on prior felony offenses, it was illegal for him to possess firearms.
Drug Enforcement Administration and IRS Criminal Investigation agents contributed to the investigation.
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.
