PENSACOLA, FLORIDA - A federal grand jury returned an indictment, charging eight defendants with conspiracy to distribute marijuana, four of whom were charged with being involved with 100 kilograms or more of marijuana. Additionally, seven of the defendants were charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering. The indictment was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
The defendants are:
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Charles Zachariah Sindylek, 31, Pensacola, Florida;
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Brandon Craig Remeyer, 34, Mission Viejo, California;
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Sanford Eugene Johnson III, 31, Pensacola, Florida;
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William Brett Brownell, 26, Milton, Florida;
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William Ezra Brownell (Brett’s father), 60, Mobile, Alabama;
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David Delgiacco, 55, Lake Forest, California;
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Andrew Paul Marcelonis, 31, Pensacola, Florida; and
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Steven Ryan Michael Sholly, 30, Pensacola, Florida.
The indictment alleges that, between January 2014 and June 2017, the defendants conspired to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana. It specifically alleges Sindylek, Remeyer, Johnson, and William Brett Brownell were responsible for involving 100 kilograms or more of marijuana in the conspiracy. The indictment also alleges that during the same time period, Sindylek, Remeyer, Johnson, both Brownells, Delgiacco, and Marcelonis conspired to launder money by transferring cash proceeds of the drug trafficking conspiracy through financial institutions. The trial is scheduled for Aug. 28, 2017 at 9:00 AM at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola.
This case resulted from an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the Pensacola Police Department, the Mobile Police Department, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, and the Gulf Breeze Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Alicia H. Forbes is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
