Inmate Charged with Running Drug Ring from Prison

INMATE SERVING STATE SENTENCE FOR MURDER CHARGED

WITH RUNNING SPRAWLING DRUG CONSPIRACY FROM PRISON

OKLAHOMA CITY – An inmate serving a thirty-five year state prison sentence for second-degree murder has been charged with running a large-scale drug trafficking operation from his prison cell, announced U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Downing.

On June 4, 2020, a federal grand jury indicted Richard Leroy, a/k/a “Solo,” 33, of eight counts of possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute and one count of a drug conspiracy.  Leroy, who was incarcerated at the Davis Correctional Facility in Holdenville, Oklahoma, is alleged to have controlled his drug conspiracy through the use of contraband cell phones.  Leroy was arraigned on these charges today in federal court in Oklahoma City.

Specifically, the indictment alleges that over a two-year period, Leroy used contraband cell phones to coordinate both the acquisition and distribution of large amounts of methamphetamine and heroin.  He accomplished this by recruiting and using non-incarcerated co-conspirators to serve as his de facto presence on the streets.

The indictment lays out eight separate instances during the period of the conspiracy in which Leroy is alleged to have possessed—through his third-party couriers—significant amounts of either methamphetamine or heroin.  All told, the indictment alleges that Leroy was running a drug conspiracy capable of moving hundreds of pounds of controlled substances each year—all without ever leaving his prison cell.

If convicted, Leroy faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison on each count, along with life of supervised release, and a fine of up to $10,000,000.

This case is the result of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the Oklahoma City Police Department, the District 21 Task Force, the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, and the Oklahoma Department of Corrections.  Assistant U.S. Attorney David McCrary is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of the work of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, the Department of Justice’s signature initiatives to address and reduce drug-related criminal activity.