SCRANTON—The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle
District of Pennsylvania announced that Akbar Muhammad, age 42, who resided in
New York City and East Stroudsburg, pleaded guilty on January 7, 2019, before
Senior U.S. District Court Judge James M. Munley, to conspiracy to distribute
and possess with intent to distribute more than a kilogram of heroin.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, Muhammad
admitted to participating in the conspiracy during 2015 through early 2019.
Muhammad admitted that he agreed with others to obtain heroin from suppliers in
New Jersey and New York, and distribute the drug to associates and customers in
Monroe County. A kilogram of heroin is approximately equivalent to 40,000
retail bags of heroin.
Muhammad was indicted by a grand jury in May 2019, as a
result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the
Pennsylvania State Police, and Stroud Area Regional Police.
Judge Munley ordered a pre-sentence investigation to be
completed. Sentencing is scheduled for April 8, 2020. Assistant U.S. Attorney
Francis P. Sempa is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a
program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities
they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for
everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the
Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S.
Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and
tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective,
locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
This case was also brought as part of a district wide
initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution
of heroin. Led by the United States
Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating
in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort
among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend,
and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.
The maximum penalty under federal law for this offenses is
life imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a
fine. There is also a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment.
Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider
and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and
seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant;
and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the
defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the
statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the
potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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