CHRISTIANSTED — A St. Croix man admitted in federal court to being a cocaine drug mule between here and Miami, authorities said.
Don-Luke George, 24, of Barren Spot, pled guilty in U.S. District Court on Thursday to one count of conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute, United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert said.
This federal offense carries a possible sentence of incarceration of five to 40 years, a maximum fine of up to $250,000 dollars, and a term of supervised release for at least four years, according to Shappert.
George’s sentencing is set for September 25.
According to court documents, on April 12, 2018, Don-Luke George, along with a co-defendant, conspired to bring 2010 grams of cocaine (2.01 kilograms) into the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport with the intent to transport the cocaine to Miami via American Airlines flight #2227.
Specifically, George, who was employed at the airport, smuggled four bricks of cocaine into the passenger waiting area of the airport, and delivered them to the co-defendant in the men’s restroom.
The co-defendant was a passenger on the outgoing American Airlines flight, but was intercepted with the cocaine prior to boarding his flight by Customs and Border Protection officers.
“Our V.I. Youth. So sorry there was nothing else,” former St. Thomas resident Kathleen Brennan said on Facebook. “Like an active oil refinery. Or a trade school….or cannabis fields. Anything but this!!!!!!”
The case was investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
The cocaine was analyzed by the DEA Southeast Laboratory in Miami.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel H. Huston prosecuted the case.
