Leader of drug-trafficking organization sentenced to 25 years

FLORIDA —Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Office of Statewide Prosecution has secured a 25-year prison sentence for the leader of a drug-trafficking organization selling cocaine and heroin in Gadsden and Leon counties, Moody has announced.

A Leon County jury previously found Kevin Choute guilty of trafficking heroin over 28 grams, trafficking cocaine over 400 grams, conspiracy to traffic cocaine over 400 grams, and felon in possession of a firearm.

“Drug traffickers profit from the misery of others, but in Florida, we are making sure they pay dearly for their crimes,” said Moody.

“The defendant in our case found out the hard way that crime never pays, and thanks to our great law enforcement partners and my Statewide Prosecutors, he will be behind bars for a long time.”

According to Moody’s announcement, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) began investigating Choute as part of Operation No Warning, a law enforcement effort that reportedly took down 27 suspected drug dealers in Gadsden and Leon counties.

Using wiretap interceptions and physical surveillance, the investigation is said to have revealed Choute as the leader of a sophisticated drug-trafficking organization. A search of Choute’s home yielded three kilograms of cocaine and approximately 714 grams of heroin.

The investigation also uncovered that Choute regularly traveled to California to purchase cocaine and heroin from illicit drug suppliers.

Choute was sentenced to 25 years in prison, followed by 10 years of probation.

Attorney General Moody’s Office of Statewide Prosecution, FDLE, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, Gadsden County Sheriff’s Office, Florida Highway Patrol and the Tallahassee Police Department participated in the investigation.

Assistant Statewide Prosecutors Guillermo Vallejo and Jae Hee Kim handled the case.