United States Drug Enforcement Administration

GRAND RAPIDS – Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Andrew B. Birge today announced that Willie David Lark, 53, of Benton Harbor, Michigan, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for possessing with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, 40 grams or more of fentanyl, and quantities of cocaine and cocaine base. During sentencing, U.S. District Judge Robert J. Jonker observed that Lark had been engaged in “crimes of escalating seriousness” ever since his first drug-related conviction in the 1990s.

Lark was previously convicted of drug trafficking and served more than twenty years in state prison for assault with intent to murder. Following a release from custody, Lark returned to drug dealing. An investigative task force executed a search warrant on Lark’s home and found a safe containing over 188 grams of 100% pure methamphetamine, also known as “ice,” over 100 grams of a mixture containing fentanyl and xylazine, over 70 grams of cocaine, and over 31 grams of cocaine base. Investigators found additional evidence inside the house that proved Lark intended to sell these drugs. Weeks later, when police approached Lark to arrest him, they found him in possession of more fentanyl, cocaine, and crack cocaine.

A federal grand jury charged Lark with two counts of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute. Following a trial in December of 2024, a separate jury convicted Lark of both offenses. “Multiple offenders, such as Willie Lark, willingly put lives at risk throughout Michigan and, more specifically, Berrien County,” remarked Acting Special Agent in Charge Andrew Lawton of the Drug Enforcement Administration. He added, “The men and women of the DEA will continue to bring drug traffickers like him to justice to keep our communities safe.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2023 at least 107,543 people died from drug poisoning across the United States, which is near the all-time high of 111,029 deaths in 2022. In Michigan, at least 2,931 people died from drug poisoning in 2023. Approximately 75% of the 2023 drug poisoning deaths across the United States were due to fentanyl. While 2024 data shows the number of deaths has started to decline, the number remains high.

The following services are available for people experiencing addiction, or their friends and loved ones:

• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Helpline, 1-800-662-4357, www.samhsa.gov/find-support/in-crisis.
• Cope Network (providing free Naloxone and other harm reduction services in Barry, Berrien, Branch, Cass, Calhoun, St. Joseph, and Van Buren Counties), 269-580-8290, www.copenetwork.org.
• The Grand Rapids Red Project (providing free Naloxone and other harm reduction services in Kent and Muskegon Counties), 616-456-9063 (Kent County), 231-563-6865 (Muskegon County), www.redproject.org.
• The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has a webpage that identifies county-by-county services.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Michigan State Police, and the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office investigated this case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Austin J. Hakes prosecuted it.

The investigation was part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The program was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States. 

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