KANSAS CITY, KAN. - An Anderson County woman was sentenced today to 162 months in federal prison for taking part in a drug trafficking conspiracy that ended in a killing, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Tracy Rockers, 24, Greeley, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. In her plea, she admitted she was present Dec. 17, 2010, at a residence in Eudora, Kan., when traffickers killed Gregory Price for failing to pay drug debts and disposed of his body by hiding it in a refrigerator.
According to court documents, an investigation began in March 2010 when the Gardner Police Department and the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office began investigating traffickers who were selling methamphetamine in Gardner. In August 2011 the Kansas Bureau of Investigation identified Rockers as one of the traffickers. Working undercover, they made the first of several methamphetamine purchases from Rockers at a location in Eudora, Kan., on Aug. 24, 2011. Over a period of months, investigators identified more than a dozen traffickers.
According to court documents, on Dec. 17, 2010, several of the traffickers confronted Gregory Price at a residence in Eudora, Kan., about $800 they said he owed them. When Price refused to pay, the traffickers decided to take him to a rural location outside Desoto, Kan. They grabbed Price and attempted to pull him out the front door, but he resisted. Then they threw him into a door, causing him to collapse and begin “making gurgling noises," according to court records. Rockers watched Price while the traffickers installed a camper shell on the back of a pickup they would use to transport Price. At some point, while lying on the floor, Price died. The traffickers put Price’s body inside a refrigerator and took it to the rural location near Desoto. More than a year later - April 19, 2012 - law enforcement found the refrigerator with Price’s body inside.
Co-defendants include:
Michael C. Redifer, 37, who was sentenced to 30 years.
Steven M. Hohn, 34, Gardner, Kan., who was sentenced to 30 years.
Michael C. Quick, 33, Eudora, Kan., who was sentenced to 20 years.
Ronnie D. Morlean, 30, Olathe, Kan., who was sentenced to 216 months.
Kerry Lee Randall, 43, who was sentenced to 180 months.
Keith Arney, 29, Fulton, Mo., who was sentenced to 173 months.
Robert Baitey, III, 39, Desoto, Kan., who was sentenced to 150 months.
Daniel Reynoso, 25, who was sentenced to 135 months.
Gregory L. Renft, 40, who was sentenced to 10 years.
Rebecca L. Zehring, 39, Desoto, Kan., who was sentenced to 105 months.
Jordan R. Noble, 24, Eudora, Kan., who was sentenced to five years.
Dustin Cook, 39, who was sentenced to 52 months.
Danny Marlin, 42, who was sentenced to four years.
Grissom commended the Gardner Police Department, the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration and Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead for their work on the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
