By Sarah Tate
Dec 17, 2020
More than 20 current and former students at Duke University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Appalachian State University have been arrested since July for dealing drugs, prosecutors announced Thursday (December 17).
Between 2017 and 2020, at least 21 people between the ages of 21 and 35 took part in a large-scale drug operation where police said they peddled thousands of pounds of marijuana, cocaine, and other drugs. Orange County Sheriff
Charles Blackwood was surprised by the amount of drugs on the campuses, and said the investigation unfolded unlike any other case I have seen.
According to the
Daily Mail, prosecutors claim the contraband was shipped through the postal service from California and distributed around college campuses in North Carolina. Multiple former fraternity students allegedly purchased cocaine, marijuana, Xanax, and MDMA, with at least one member reportedly selling to his frat brothers. In total, prosecutors
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. (WRAL) Federal prosecutors and law enforcement announced a bust Thursday of a drug trafficking ring that funneled more than a thousand pounds of marijuana, hundreds of kilograms of cocaine and other drugs throughout the campuses of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University and Appalachian State University.
More than $1.5 million in drug sales were made from 2017 to 2020 by the defendants, according to court records.
Matt Martin, U.S. attorney for the middle district of North Carolina, and Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood expressed surprise and dismay at the amount of narcotics being moved on college campuses and the attitude of those involved.
21 charged in alleged drug ring involving major North Carolina universities By Victoria Albert
December 17, 2020 / 7:36 PM / CBS News
Twenty-one people have been charged in an alleged drug ring that involved multiple fraternities and students at major North Carolina universities, the Department of Justice announced Thursday. The alleged drug ring brought over 1,000 pounds of marijuana, several hundred kilograms of cocaine, and significant quantities of other drugs onto the college campuses over several years, according to the DOJ.
The first person charged in the investigation was Francisco Javier Ochoa, who the DOJ identified as a primary supplier of the narcotics. Court documents allege that Ochoa supplied approximately 200 pounds of marijuana and 2 kilograms of cocaine a week to a cooperating defendant in Orange County, North Carolina. Ochoa pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced in November to 73 months in prison. He was also ordered to
21 arrested in ‘brazen’ drug ring involving North Carolina frat members: Officials
Ryan Herron/iStockBy MEREDITH DELISO, ABC News
(Chapel Hill, N.C.) Twenty-one people were arrested in a “brazen” drug ring that allegedly involved members of fraternities at several North Carolina universities, authorities announced Thursday.
The suspects, who allegedly moved thousands of pounds of marijuana, hundreds of kilograms of cocaine and other narcotics, include current and former students at the University of North Carolina, Duke University and Appalachian State University, according to Matthew Martin, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina.
“This is a large drug network and supply chain fueling a drug culture at fraternities and within these universities and around these universities and towns,” Martin said during a press briefing. “These are 21 hardened drug dealers.”