CHRISTIANSTED – A St. Croix man was given five years in prison by a federal judge today for possessing about 2.3 ounces of cocaine base.
Winston DeCastro, 45, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court in Golden Rock on the charge of aiding and abetting the distribution of “crack cocaine,” U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert said.
U.S. District Court Chief Judge Wilma Lewis sentenced DeCastro to 60 months imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, a $2,000 fine, and a $100 special assessment.
DeCastro pled guilty to the charge on March 20, 2018.
A federal grand jury had previously returned an indictment against DeCastro, aka “Moo Moo,” on September 15, 2015.
According to court documents, on April 21, 2015, DeCastro supplied crack cocaine to a co-defendant, Bruce McIntosh. DeCastro then transported McIntosh to McDonalds at the LaReine Shopping Center in St. Croix for the purposes of selling the cocaine to a buyer. Upon arrival, McIntosh exited DeCastro’s vehicle and sold the cocaine to the buyer for $1,800.
Laboratory testing revealed that the drugs were cocaine base, a Schedule II controlled substance, with a net weight of 65.2 grams.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Task Force Officers with the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD).
It case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel H. Huston.