Feds Say Nilda Morton Was The ‘Brilliant’ Mastermind of A Rock City Cocaine Ring … But Still Obsesses Over The Size Of Her ‘Ass’
CHARLOTTE AMALIE – A native of Anguilla was given eight years in prison by a federal court for masterminding a cocaine and heroin operation that stretched from St. Thomas to Pittsburgh to Cleveland and Detroit.
Nilda Morton, 32, of The Valley, Anguilla was sentenced on Thursday to 97 months (8.08 years) in prison, followed by five years of supervised release for possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, Acting U.S. Attorney Joycelyn Hewlett said.
U.S. District Court Judge Curtis Gomez also ordered Morton to pay a $700 special assessment and perform 400 hours of community service, according to Hewlett.
On January 23, 2017, Morton pleaded guilty to seven counts of possession with intent to distribute not less than five and not more than 15 kilograms of cocaine in connection with a 13-member drug smuggling ring operated by Morton.
From October 2015 through July 2016, Morton paid airline employees at the Cyril E. King International Airport and female drug couriers to smuggle cocaine to the U.S. mainland.
97 MONTHS IN PRISON: Nilda Morton
On three occasions between June and July 2016, airport security surveillance footage captured Morton and other drug couriers in a public restroom exchanging vacuum-sealed packages of cocaine before boarding their flights.
The investigation culminated on July 1, 2016, with the arrest of Dellanna Magner, 23, of St. Thomas, after she had smuggled three kilograms of cocaine onboard an American Airlines flight destined for Miami.
FIRST ARRESTED: Dellanna Magner (left)
Magner pleaded guilty on January 23, 2017, and was sentenced on March 16, 2017, to five years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release for her conviction on cocaine possession.
AWAITING SENTENCING: Roniqua Hart
Still waiting to be sentenced are Vanier Murraine, 34, a native of St. Thomas and resident of Detroit; Christopher Butler, 30, and Drue Williams, III, 35, of Twinsburgh, Ohio; and Taheeda George, 37, Roniqua Hart, 24, Kinia Blyden, 23, and Jerrisha Rawlins, 22, all of St. Thomas. Murraine, Butler, Williams, George, Hart, Blyden and Rawlins all pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
AWAITING SENTENCING: Kinia Blyden
Also awaiting sentencing are Rasheem Morton, 36, Monique David, 40, and Te’Nae George, 23, all of St. Thomas, who pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy.
AWAITING SENTENCING: Te’Nae George
The final defendant, Kanya Tirado, 38, of St. Thomas, was found guilty by a federal jury of three counts of cocaine conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute cocaine will be sentenced on June 8, 2017.
AWAITING SENTENCING: Jerrisha Rawlins
The Virgin Islands Free Press was the first media source in the territory to break the news of a massive cocaine-heroin ring between St. Thomas and Detroit and Pittsburgh with a series of reports that began on Sept. 14, 2016. (See below.)
Morton was apprehended at V.C. Bird International Airport in Antigua on Sept. 20, 2016 as a fugitive from justice.
“The only thing worse than running out of weed is when that 5th porn hub video done n u have to wait til midnight to continue where you left off,” Nilda Morton wrote in a Facebook post of August 9, 2016.
The case was the result of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Pittsburgh, New York, Cleveland, Detroit, and St. Thomas.
It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Delia Smith.
NILDA MORTON: “I’m so obsessed with my ass.”–Facebook post
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