WASHINGTON – Ricardo Anton Koonce, 35, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today to 24 months in prison in connection with a bicoastal marijuana distribution conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
“Koonce and his co-conspirators ran a systematic drug trafficking operation, making repeated cross‑country trips to stock a D.C. stash house and selling marijuana on the streets while armed with firearms,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “We will not allow armed traffickers to endanger our neighborhoods, and anyone who treats this city as their drug marketplace will be held accountable.”
Koonce, aka “King Phew,” pleaded guilty on March 3 before U.S. District Judge Dabney L. Friedrich to conspiracy to distribute marijuana. In addition to the 24-month prison term, Judge Friedrich ordered Koonce to serve three years of supervised release. Federal prosecutors had requested a 26-month prison term.
According to court papers, from at least October 2023 through May 2024, Koonce and his co-conspirators traveled multiple times between the Baltimore-Washington area and Los Angeles to buy marijuana for distribution on the East Coast.
In February 2024, agents stopped Koonce and his co-conspirators at BWI Airport when they returned from one of their trips to L.A. Agents seized about 54.5 pounds of marijuana, packaged in vacuum-sealed plastic bags, that had been hidden in suitcases carried by one of Koonce’s co-conspirators.
Koonce and his co-conspirators stored and sold their marijuana out of an apartment in the 1900 block of C Street SE. Agents observed Koonce and his co-conspirators conducting hand-to-hand transactions consistent with drug sales outside the building on a daily basis.
On Oct. 30, 2024, law enforcement executed search warrants at the C Street SE apartment and at Koonce’s home on the 700 block of 2nd Street NE. At the apartment, agents recovered marijuana, other narcotics, and several firearms. At Koonce’s residence, agents recovered two Glock pistols, magazines and ammunition, about $53,569 in cash, and a quantity of marijuana. Koonce admitted that he possessed the firearms in connection with his role in the marijuana trafficking conspiracy.
The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration – Washington Division, and the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
The matter was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nihar Mohanty and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Isabelle Sun.
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