A Norfolk resident has been sentenced to five years in prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to distribute and possess cocaine with the intent to distribute.
“Antonio Saunders has learned that kilogram-level cocaine shipments will not enter the Commonwealth of Virginia without swift and certain consequences," said Lindsey Halligan, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. "Our vigilance is unwavering, and we will hold drug traffickers accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
Court documents show that in September 2021, authorities identified two parcels suspected of containing narcotics being shipped from Texas to Virginia. Investigators intercepted one parcel and found it contained 2.44 pounds of cocaine. The second package was allowed to continue on its route.
On September 9, 2021, after this parcel was delivered and left at a residence in Norfolk, Antonio Deshaka Saunders, 43, picked up the package, put it into a vehicle, and attempted to leave. Law enforcement conducted a traffic stop and recovered one kilogram of cocaine from the parcel.
The sentencing announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Halligan; Christopher Heck, Special Agent in Charge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI) Washington, D.C.; and Paul Neudigate, Chief of Virginia Beach Police. U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen presided over the sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin M. Comstock prosecuted the case.
Related information can be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia or through PACER by searching Case No. 2:25-cr-72.
