From the stash house to the jail house; 12 people are behind bars tonight (Wednesday) for reportedly moving thousands of pounds of marijuana from Texas to stash houses in Washington County. 11 of those charged, made their first appearance in federal court on Wednesday.
Wednesday afternoon, the individuals were escorted into the United States District Court in Panama City.
- Rufus Daniel ("RD") Curington, Jr., 70 years old, Vernon
- Charles A. Armstrong, 56 years old, Vernon
- Joseph Kevin Jeter, 43 years old, Vernon
- James Hardesty Moore, 71 years old, Panama City
- Jaime Rodriguez, 41 years old, Orlando
- Daniel Nunez, 35 years old, McAllen, TX
- John Paul Walker, 44 years old, McAllen, TX
- Alberto Gomez, 25 years old, McAllen, TX
- Jorge Martinez, 34 years old, McAllen, TX
- Jesus Antonio Gonzalez, 46 years old, McAllen, TX
- Alejandro Amaya, 30 years old, McAllen, TX
They all sat before Magistrate Judge Larry Bodiford and were charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana. According to the criminal complaint document, authorities seized 30 firearms, $615,000 in cash and 2,700 lbs. of marijuana during the drug raid in Vernon.
Monday night, federal agents raided stash houses in Vernon and Central Florida simultaneously. The "Gulf Cartel" --- shipped thousands of pounds of marijuana from McAllen, Texas to Washington county, and then on to Jacksonville and Orlando.
The cash from the sale of the drugs was then returned through Washington County to Texas. Prosecutors estimate each shipment had a street value of up to one million dollars.
Seven of the suspects will be returned to the district bringing upon their charges. According to assistant US Attorney, Gayle Littleton, they'll probably be adding additional firearms charges. All face a minimum of 10 years in prison.
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