Life in prison for Florida cocaine kingpin who ordered killing of informant

TAMPA, Fla. — The alleged leader of a drug-trafficking organization that distributed cocaine in Fort Myers and Panama City and ordered a former gang member killed has been sentenced to life in prison.

U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington has sentenced Robert Lee Ward, 55, of Fort Myers, to life in federal prison after a jury found Mr Ward guilty of conspiracy to distribute cocaine on February 18, 2022. Another jury found the Fort Myers man guilty of killing a former gang member turned  FBI informant on September 29, 2023.

According to the evidence and testimony presented during the trials, Mr Ward was the leader of a drug trafficking organization in Fort Myers that distributed cocaine in Fort Myers and other locations for over a decade until his arrest in 2018.

Reportedly, Mr Ward and his co-conspirators routinely purchased kilograms of cocaine from Ward’s supplier in Miami and distributed the cocaine in Fort Myers and Panama City.

Federal investigators used confidential informants to make multiple purchases of cocaine from Mr Ward’s co-conspirators. Investigators said they relocated a confidential informant who purchased cocaine from Ward after they learned of a threat against the informant’s life.

In 2012, the FBI obtained the assistance of Kristopher Smith, a member of Mr Ward’s organization, who agreed to cooperate in the investigation against Ward.

According to prosecutors, after learning about Mr Smith’s cooperation with investigators, Ward solicited James Broomfield to kill Smith. Mr Broomfield reportedly agreed to kill Mr Smith for $30,000.

Ward is said to have provided Broomfield with a loaded firearm and told him where to locate Smith.

According to the evidence and testimony presented in court, on January 7, 2013, Mr Broomfield and another individual followed Smith and his girlfriend as they drove to their son’s school. Mr Smith remained in the car while his girlfriend entered the school.

Mr Broomfield and his accomplice parked their vehicle behind the informant’s car. Broomfield allegedly ran up to the car and shot Smith several times, killing him.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the Fort Myers Police Department, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Panama City Police Department, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, and the Tampa Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Sinacore and Candace Rich prosecuted it.