Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
WASHINGTON – Melvin Edward Allen, Jr., 39, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 75 months in federal prison for his role in a fentanyl trafficking conspiracy which distributed hundreds of thousands of lethal fentanyl-laced pills from Southern California to destinations throughout the United States, including Washington D.C. Allen was one of 24 co-defendants arrested over the course of 2023 in D.C., Virginia, Maryland, San Diego, and Los Angeles and charged in the conspiracy.
The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro, Special Agent in Charge Ibrar A. Mian of the Drug Enforcement Administration Washington Division, Inspector in Charge Damon Wood of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Washington Division, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.
Allen, aka “21,” pleaded guilty on December 18, 2024, to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 40 grams of fentanyl. In addition to the 75-month prison term, Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered Allen to serve five years of supervised release.
According to court documents, Allen entered into the conspiracy after he was introduced to a Los Angeles-based drug trafficker, co-defendant Hector David Valdez, who was a distributor of fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone pills. Allen was introduced to Valdez by D.C.-based fentanyl traffickers who were co-conspirators of Allen.
Allen’s role was to travel to Southern California in order to facilitate the sale of fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone pills from the wholesaler to D.C.-based fentanyl redistributors. Allen most frequently brokered the purchase of the pills in person, taking approximately 65 flights from the DMV to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Allen used his commissions from the sales he brokered to fund a lavish lifestyle and routinely boasted of his spending habits and wealth on social media.
The impetus for the investigation was the overdose death of Diamond Lynch, a young mother in Southeast D.C. In addition to investigating and prosecuting the death resulting case, law enforcement followed the evidence and uncovered a vast network of traffickers who transported fentanyl from Mexico to Los Angeles to the District of Columbia. Since then, investigators have seized more than 450,000 fentanyl pills, 1.5 kilograms of fentanyl powder, and 30 firearms.
This investigation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
The prosecutions followed a joint investigation by the DEA Washington Division and the USPIS Washington Division in partnership with the Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with additional support from the DEA Los Angeles, San Diego, and Riverside Field Offices, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Washington Field Office, and the Charles County, Maryland Sheriff’s Office. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Central and Southern Districts of California, the Eastern District of Virginia, and the District of Maryland.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. Kinskey, Solomon S. Eppel, and Iris McCranie, of the Violent Crimes and Narcotics Trafficking Division.
|
DEFENDANT |
AGE |
LOCATION |
CHARGES/SENTENCE |
|
Hector David Valdez, aka “Curl” |
27 |
Santa Fe Springs, California |
Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl; conspiracy to commit international money laundering. |
|
Craig Eastman |
21 |
Washington, D.C. | Sentenced Feb. 6, 2025, to 165 months for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than 40 grams of fentanyl. |
| Charles Jeffrey Taylor |
21 |
Washington, D.C. | Pleaded guilty Feb. 28, 2025, to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Raymond Nava, Jr. |
21 |
Bell Gardens, California |
Sentenced Sept. 17, 2024, to 14 years for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Ulises Aldaz |
28 |
Bell Gardens, California |
Sentenced June 28, 2024, to 95 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Max Alexander Carias Torres |
27 |
Bell Gardens, California |
Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl; conspiracy to commit international money laundering. |
| Teron Deandre McNeil, aka “Wild Boy” |
35 |
Washington, D.C. | Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl; Conspiracy to commit wire fraud. |
|
Marvin Anthony Bussie, aka “Money Marr” |
22 |
Washington, D.C. | Sentenced June 28, 2024, to 120 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Marcus Orlando Brown |
29 |
Washington, D.C. | Sentenced Oct. 3, 2024, to 108 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Columbian Thomas, aka “Cruddy Murda” |
27 |
Washington, D.C. | Sentenced Oct. 22, 2024, to 160 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Wayne Rodell Carr-Maiden |
35 |
Washington, D.C. | Sentenced April 29, 2024, to 45 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. |
|
Andre Malik Edmond, aka “Draco” |
23 |
Temple Hills, Maryland | Sentenced July 22, 2024, to 130 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
|
Treyveon James Johnson, aka “Treyski” |
21 |
Alexandria, Virginia | Sentenced Sept. 5, 2024, to 108 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. |
|
Karon Olufemi Blalock, aka “Fat Bags” |
30 |
Alexandria, Virginia | Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl; conspiracy to commit wire fraud; conspiracy to commit money laundering. |
|
Ronte Ricardo Greene, aka “Cardiddy” |
29 |
Washington, D.C. | Pleaded guilty Feb. 27, 2025, to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Melvin Edward Allen, Jr., aka “21” |
39 |
Washington, D.C. | Sentenced June 20, 2025, to 75 months for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. |
|
Darius Quincy Hodges, aka “Brick” |
34 |
Glen Allen, Virginia | Conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
|
Lamin Sesay, aka “Rock Star” |
28 |
Alexandria, Virginia | Sentenced May 30, 2025, to 110 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Paul Alejandro Felix |
26 |
Glendale, California |
Sentenced Nov. 12, 2024, to 164 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
|
Omar Arana, aka “Frogs” |
27 |
Cudahy, California |
Sentenced May 2, 2025, to 93 months, for conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Edgar Balderas, Jr., aka “Nano” |
27 |
San Diego, California |
Sentenced May 8, 2025, to 148 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Raul Pacheco Ramirez |
31 |
Long Beach, California |
Sentenced Nov. 26, 2024, to 95 months for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Giovani Alejandro Briones |
31 |
Victorville, California | Sentenced Feb. 20, 2025, to 90 months for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. |
| Alfredo Rodriguez Gonzalez |
26 |
Rosarito, Mexico |
Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl; conspiracy to commit international money laundering. |