Three men from the North Bay have been charged by the feds for operating a drug ring that involved shipping pills and methamphetamine across state lines, specifically to central Tennessee.
Matthew Cox, 26, Marcus Johnson, 24, and Ricardo Molinero-Alcarez, 27, were all arraigned in federal court in San Francisco earlier this month ahead of their being extradited to face trial in Tennessee.
According to a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, "agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration and Homeland Security Investigations were investigating the distribution of counterfeit fentanyl-laced Oxycodone tablets with the inscription 'M30,' being shipped from the Santa Rosa area to Virginia, and to more than a dozen other states, including Tennessee."
Some of these pills were allegedly being sent by mail to individuals in Columbia, Tennessee, and via social media and mobile payment records, they were traced back to the three men in Santa Rosa.
In July, agents from Homeland Security Investigations intercepted a package at a UPS Store in Sebastopol that was destined for Nashville containing thousands of the fentanyl-laced oxy tablets and "more than eight pounds of methamphetamine." Another two packages were intercepted in August in Santa Rosa, also destined for residences in Nashville, and those contained more pills and around four pounds of meth.
As Bay Area News Group reports, Cox, Johnson, and Molinero-Alcarez are accused of conspiring to ship drugs over two years to at least 14 states, including Virginia, New York, Wisconsin, and Georgia. Investigators seized a lot of cash, weapons, and marijuana from the trio as well — around $500,000 in cash, including $75,000 that was found in Cox's car.
Court records indicate that Cox also incriminated himself via his own rap lyrics — he's described as an "aspiring rap musician" who goes by the stage name Rosso. In the track "Thinkin' to Myself," which you can hear below — and see Cox doing his best gangster impression — Cox raps about "making moves" in Tennessee and "turning 10 into 20," and graduating to the big time of drug dealing after "selling sevens out the cubby" in middle school. He also mentions "Columbia," likely referring to his associates in Columbia, Tennessee, and selling "blues," which agents say refer to the blue "M30" pills.
So there's a lesson in here about not spelling out your crimes by way of brag-rapping, because that could be used against you in a court of law.
Per the feds, Cox and his two pals each face up to 20 years in prison. And their case will now be prosecuted in Tennessee.