TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—The Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Office of Statewide Prosecution today announced the conviction and sentencing of Willie Marion Jenkins, a St. Petersburg heroin trafficker. OSP prosecuted the case and a Pinellas County jury found Jenkins guilty of trafficking illegal drugs and conspiracy to traffic illegal drugs. The Honorable Frank Quesada imposed a 25-year state prison sentence on the defendant. Jenkins’ conviction follows guilty pleas from four criminal associates.
In September 2014, authorities arrested Jenkins, along with associate Mary Hampton, following a several months-long investigation into the heroin distribution by Jenkins’ network of drug dealers in South St. Petersburg. The Drug Enforcement Administration and St. Petersburg Police Department conducted the investigation, with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. During the investigation, law enforcement seized approximately four ounces of heroin and one firearm.
The three other associates, Edmond Evans, Travis Times and David McGhee, all pleaded guilty to first-degree felonies of conspiracy to traffic in heroin, four grams or more, but less than 14 grams. Hampton previously pleaded guilty to possession of heroin, a third-degree felony.
Attorney General Bondi’s Assistant Statewide Prosecutor Jessica Costello and Deputy Chief Assistant Statewide Prosecutor Joseph Spataro prosecuted the case.
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The Office of Statewide Prosecution prosecutes multi-circuit organized crime while working regularly with federal and state counterparts to coordinate efforts against criminal activity. The office provides proactive partnership to law enforcement and is not limited to geographic or judicial boundaries.
