Jason R. Coody, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida
Lorenzo Heatrice, a 70-year-old resident of Marianna, Florida, was found guilty by a federal jury of conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine. The jury also found him guilty on two counts of distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. One of the charges involved five grams, while the other involved 50 grams of methamphetamine. The guilty verdict was announced by Michelle Spaven, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Evidence presented at the trial, along with court records, showed that Heatrice was involved with other known drug traffickers. Between June 2023 and April 2024, they worked together to distribute large quantities of methamphetamine in Marianna. Further, in September 2023, Heatrice sold methamphetamine to a confidential informant on two separate occasions.
The investigation, which led to Heatrice's conviction, was a coordinated effort by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jessica Etherton and Eric Welch.
Heatrice's sentencing is set for July 11, 2025, at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee before Chief United States District Judge Mark E. Walker.
This case forms part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide Department of Justice initiative aimed at repelling illegal immigration and eliminating cartels and transnational criminal organizations. The initiative combines resources from different task forces including the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is among 94 offices nationwide under the Attorney General. Public court documents can be accessed via the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. Further information about the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is available on their official site.
