HARRISONBURG, Va. – A Florida woman, the ninth and final defendant to be sentenced as part of a large methamphetamine conspiracy, was sentenced this week to 10 years in federal prison.
Jacqueline Tatiana Cuellar, 53, of Orlando, Florida, was convicted along with three other co-defendants by a Harrisonburg jury of conspiring to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of actual methamphetamine or 500 grams or more of methamphetamine mixture.
In addition to Cuellar, Stephen “City” Purks, 36, of King George, Virginia, Carlos “C-Lo” Bariola, 35, of Hialeah, Florida, and Natassia “Prima” Kimble, 32, of Hialeah, Florida, were tried by jury and convicted.
In July 2023, Bariola, Purks, and Kimble were sentenced for their roles in the conspiracy: Bariola was sentenced to 27 years, Purks to 25 years, and Kimble to 10 years.
Co-defendants Jessica Grote, 37, of Jacksonville, Florida, Ashlyn Gates, 35, of Baker, West Virginia, Stephanie Butler, 28, of Winchester, Virginia, April Mosley, 43, of Jacksonville, Florida, and Catherine Rec, 48, of Newport News, Virginia, all pleaded guilty for their roles in the conspiracy.
According to court documents and evidence presented during the trial, both Purks and Bariola are career criminals who were serving time in state prison in Florida. During the life of the conspiracy, Purks and Bariola, organized and led the methamphetamine conspiracy from inside the Florida Department of Corrections using women they had recruited from outside the jail. The two men ran the operation using contraband cellphones, one of which was located in Purk’s anal cavity.
The methamphetamine was eventually trafficked and sold into the greater Winchester area.
United States Attorney Christopher R. Kavanaugh, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s Washington Division Jared Forget, and Damon Wood, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service – Washington Division, made the announcement.
The Drug Enforcement Administration – Winchester Resident Office, the United States Postal Inspection Service – Office of the Inspector General, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Northwest Virginia Regional Drug and Gang Task Force (which is comprised of Special Agents, Investigators, and Detectives from the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office, the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office, the Shenandoah County Sheriff’s Office, the Page County Sheriff’s Office, the Winchester Police Department, the Front Royal Police Department, the Strasburg Police Department, the Luray Police Department, and the Virginia State Police) investigated the case.
The Drug Enforcement Administration in Jacksonville, Florida, Miami, Florida, Orlando, Florida, and the Florida Department of Corrections also contributed substantially to the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly McGann and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather L. Carlton prosecuted the case.
2023-10-18 13:11:00
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