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A South Carolina man, who was previously released from state custody for robbing and killing a person, and a Georgia woman have been convicted of smuggling drugs through McAllen, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office news release.
Joseph Gray Jr., 47, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine on Sept. 12, 2022.
Jasmine Cecelia Dorsey, 28, entered her plea on Feb. 1, 2022, to importing methamphetamine.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez sentenced Gray to 30 years in federal prison while Dorsey received a little over five years.
“At the hearing, the court heard Gray’s trafficking organization smuggled drugs throughout parts of the eastern seaboard including Georgia, the Carolinas, New York, Virginia and Washington, D.C.,” the release said.
In addition, the court heard how after Gray was released from state custody for robbing and killing a person and from federal custody for trafficking crack cocaine, he continued to smuggle drugs which led to a series of supervised release revocations and an additional drug trafficking conviction, according to the release.
During sentencing, Alvarez said that Gary was given plenty of chances to change his life but didn’t do so.
According to the release, two others, Iyana De’Kyra Carter and Keith Anthony Murray, were previously convicted and sentenced for their roles in the conspiracy.
Carter received a sentence of more than six years in prison while Murray received a little over 15 years in prison.
“On July 31, 2021, Dorsey and Carter traveled from Mexico and attempted to enter the United States through Hidalgo, Texas, port of entry with approximately 18 kilograms of pure meth concealed in a gas tank,” the release said.
The investigation revealed that Gray ordered Murray to hire drug mules.
Both Dorsey and Carter drove from Atlanta, Georgia, to Monterrey, Mexico, where they loaded their vehicle with the methamphetamine and attempted to smuggle it back to Georgia in order to distribute.
“Gray coordinated extensively with Mexican and Panama narcotics traffickers to ensure the meth was received safely,” the release said.
He is to remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future while Dorsey was permitted to remain on bond and to voluntarily surrender herself at a later date.
