ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) — A Roanoke man was convicted for various drug charges in connection to one of the largest fentanyl seizures in the state, according to the Department of Justice.
Monta Orlando Jordan, 44, was convicted of the following charges after a six-day jury trial: one count of conspiring to distribute heroin, fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine; one count of possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl; one count of attempting to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine; one count of attempting to possess with the intent to distribute heroin; and possession on one or more firearms in furtherance of the overall drug conspiracy.
“Until his arrest in August 2017, Monta Jordan oversaw a drug distribution network responsible for dealing huge quantities of heroin, fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine throughout the Roanoke Valley,” U.S. Attorney Thomas Cullen said in a statement.
The Department of Justice said Jordan led a drug operation program beginning in the summer of 2016 that continued during his detention for federal charges, which begun in August 2017. Jordan allegedly used phones smuggled into the jail to coordinate the delivery and distribution of narcotic.
An associate and girlfriend of Jordan, Amany Mohamed Raya, was convicted January for attempting to smuggle a telephone to the suspect within a fake binder of documents, officials said.
“In a coordinated effort by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Roanoke City Sheriff’s Department, the United States Marshals Service, and the Drug Enforcement Administration [DEA], authorities caught Jordan in possession of one of the contraband phones and successfully intercepted Raya’s fake legal mail before it could be delivered to Jordan,” according to authorities.
Officials said Jordan trafficked drugs in the Roanoke area through the mail and couriers who transported the narcotics from places such as New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Ohio. Evidence was also found that Jordan received drugs via FedEx from Arizona and in return mailed payments to several recipients in the state, authorities said.
In one package, investigators found a basketball wrapped in carbon paper and “surrounded by miscellaneous chair cushions” with $49,950 contained inside, according to authorities.
Further evidence of Jordan’s drug operation was found in the manner he transported narcotics in his vehicle. Jordan, who was also known as “Ghost” and “Tae,” drove a burgundy Ford Fusion, which he called the “Batmobile.” Surveillance officers conducted a traffic stop on Jordan on August 5, 2017, ” that authorities allege was a return trip by Jordan and his associated from New York.”
In the search of the car at a later time, agents found a secret compartment underneath the factory-installed carpet in the trunk of the car that contained more than four pounds of fentanyl, “one of the largest seizures of its kind at the time,” officials said.
During the jury trial, evidence was also presented on the delivery of drugs that Jordan received that amounted to at least 36 kilograms of cocaine and a kilogram of heroine, which value ranged from $35,000 to $60,000 per kilogram.
Jordan was arrested when authorities intercepted a FedEx drug delivery of cocaine and heroin, replaced the drugs with fake narcotics and made a “controlled delivery” of the FedEx package, officials said.
Authorities used aerial surveillance to record Jordan picking up the delivery with the fake drugs inside and drive toward Highway 122 in Bedford County. Video captured Jordan throwing the package of fake drugs out the window of his vehicle and over a bridge. Soon after, he was arrested.
The investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Virginia State Police, the Roanoke City and Roanoke County Police Departments, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and members of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force (HIDTA) with the assistance of several other agencies.
LATEST STORIES:
- Fort Pickett officially renamed ‘Fort Barfoot’ in honor of war hero
- Salem Museum celebrates new exhibit ‘Through Their Eyes’
- A look at the divide over Virginia hemp bills and changes Youngkin could make
- Vigil held in Roanoke to honor cold case victims
- Pedestrian hospitalized after vehicle crash on Hershberger Road NW