A California woman connected to her boyfriend’s illegal drug organization that operated in Novi and elsewhere across the United States is headed to prison.
At a federal court hearing in Detroit on Wednesday, Teeauna White, 36, of Moreno Valley, California was sentenced to three years and six months behind bars for laundering money obtained through the organization’s illegal drug sales.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, White conspired with her boyfriend, Maurice Mountain McCoy to conceal his drug money by setting up multiple businesses and controlling access to bank accounts. The organization’s members deposited proceeds from the drug sales into the accounts and delivered thousands of dollars in cash to McCoy and White, who used it to purchase pricey cars, a Southern California home, jewelry and more. As part of her sentence, White was ordered to forfeit interest in the half-million dollar home.
McCoy, described by officials as a “fentanyl kingpin,” and several others involved in the organization pleaded to charges, while White and another defendant — one of her relatives — went to trial this past summer and were found guilty.
The case against McCoy, White and the others was uncovered during an investigation by the DEA and IRS who discovered drug distribution hubs in multiple cities throughout the United States, including Novi. A DEA raid in July 2017 at a Novi condominium turned up more than 30 kilograms of fentanyl — more than 15 million fatal dosages — and more than a half million dollars, officials said. The raid happened after an investigation linked a UPC code from a Sony PlayStation box used to heroin deliveries, and the code led agents to the Novi condo where the PlayStation was active, officials said.
At the time, the drug seizure was reportedly the largest in Michigan and one of the largest in the nation.
“Money launderers are an essential, but often unseen, part of the drug trade. Their relative anonymity allows money launderers to profit handsomely from the drug business, while avoiding the more significant risks of drug dealing,” U.S. Attorney Dawn Ison stated in a news release. “But they help drug dealers access and enjoy the proceeds of a crime that poisons our communities. Money launderers should be held accountable and punished commensurately with the importance of their role in drug trafficking, and we will do our part by ensuring they are aggressively prosecuted.”
Added Special Agent in Charge Orville Greene: “As drug traffickers and money launderers become more sophisticated and creative in the way in which they ply their trade, the DEA and our partners will endeavor to work smarter to hold them accountable. People who knowingly conspire to launder drug proceeds will also be held accountable for the harm they inflict on our communities.”
McCoy was sentenced last March to 22 years in federal prison. He also has a prior drug conviction in California, for which he spent 10 years in federal prison.
Police: Massachusetts man jailed for harassing and threatening Oakland County official