WALTON COUNTY, Fla. — Three people have pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute cocaine by shipping it through the mail. According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida (USAO), 20 packages were reportedly sent to various addresses in Okaloosa and Walton County.
Niceville.com Community Partner
Omar Josue Morales-Rodriguez, 44, of Freeport, Marcos Aguilar Gonzalez, 39, of Santa Rosa Beach, and Edmar Agustin Gonzalez, 33, of Crestview, each entered guilty pleas to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess cocaine with intent to distribute.
Mr Morales-Rodriguez and Marcos Gonzalez also pled guilty to an additional count of distribution and possession with intent to distribute cocaine. Morales-Rodriguez also pleaded guilty to an additional count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon.
Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, announced the pleas.
Niceville.com Community Partner
Evidence introduced at the plea hearings established that between October 2019 and June 13, 2023, the three conspired together and with others to ship cocaine via the United States Mail from Puerto Rico to the Northern District of Florida.
During the investigation, law enforcement reportedly seized four packages that were shipped via the United States Mail, of which three contained one kilogram of cocaine each and one contained 125 grams of cocaine.
The investigation further revealed that 20 United States Mail packages, believed to contain cocaine, were shipped as part of the conspiracy from Puerto Rico to various addresses in Okaloosa and Walton County.
Niceville.com Community Partner
Those packages were said to be similar in weight and size to the packages seized that contained one kilogram of cocaine each.
Evidence introduced at the plea hearings further established that a search of a storage unit in Walton County led to the seizure of four firearms and various rounds of ammunition that Morales-Rodriguez unlawfully possessed.
Evidence introduced at the time of the plea hearings established that Mr Morales-Rodriguez is a convicted felon who had been previously convicted in federal court in Puerto Rico for possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon.
Evidence introduced at the plea hearings established that Morales-Rodriguez conspired to distribute and possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, and Marcos Gonzalez and Edmar Gonzalez each conspired to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
Sentencing hearings have been scheduled for May 23, 2024, and June 6, 2024.
Mr Morales-Rodriguez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years imprisonment with a maximum term of life and up to a lifetime of supervised release following any imprisonment.
Niceville.com Community Partner
Marco Gonzalez and Edmar Gonzalez each could face a mandatory minimum sentence of five years imprisonment with a maximum term of 40 years imprisonment and up to a lifetime of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case resulted from a joint investigation by the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Florida Highway Patrol. Assistant United States Attorney J. Ryan Love is prosecuting the case.
