BOSTON - A Cape Cod woman pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with a drug and money laundering ring.
Diane Johnson, 50, of Mashpee, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to one count of money laundering conspiracy and is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 23, 2017.
From 2010 to 2015, Johnson and her son David Landry conspired to launder drug proceeds in order to disguise the nature of the funds and continue their drug trafficking activity. From May 2014 to January 2015, two of Johnson’s co-defendants, Landry and Justin Groom, conspired to manufacture and distribute marijuana and possessed marijuana with the intent to distribute it. Landry, a convicted felon, was also found in possession of a.40 caliber semi-automatic pistol. He continued participating in the criminal offense while in jail on state charges. Groom was also charged with eight counts of money laundering in connection with using the proceeds of the illegal activities to pay the rent of the home where he grew marijuana, at Landry’s direction. A third co-defendant, Evan Lopes, aided by Landry, possessed methylone.
David Landry and Justin Groom were sentenced in March 2017 to 78 months in prison and two years of probation, respectively. Evan Lopes is scheduled to plead guilty on May 23, 2017.
The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Mickey D. Leadingham, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Boston Field Division; Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston; Barnstable Police Chief Paul MacDonald; Barnstable County Sheriff James M. Cummings; Colonel Richard D. McKeon, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; and Cape & Islands District Attorney Michael O’Keefe, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ted Heinrich of Weinreb’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
