The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Richard Graham, 37, of Bronx, New York was sentenced yesterday for having possessed with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of cocaine base in Vermont. United States District Judge Geoffrey Crawford sentenced Graham to 70 months in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release.
According to court records, on the evening of July 8, 2015, Graham arrived at the Waterbury train station as a passenger on the northbound Vermonter. He was picked up from the station by a vehicle, which was subsequently stopped by law enforcement as it traveled toward Stowe, Vermont. During the stop, Graham initially identified himself by a fake name and presented a Vermont identification card in that name that he had obtained using another person’s name, social security number, and date of birth.
During a consensual search of the vehicle, officers located drug paraphernalia, and a K9 trained in drug detection alerted to the spot where Graham had been seated. Officers subsequently determined that Graham had concealed approximately 48 grams of cocaine base in his body. Further investigation showed that Graham had been distributing controlled substances in Vermont for approximately one year, repeatedly traveling to Vermont on commercial carriers from New York City while possessing cocaine base.
Graham has three prior felony convictions for selling or possessing with intent to deliver controlled substances.
This matter was investigated by the Vermont State Police Drug Task Force and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan A. Ophardt. Graham was represented by John-Claude Charbonneau, Esq. of Rutland.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
