MOTHER AND SON SENTENCED FOR CONSPIRACY TO DISTRIBUTE METHAMPHETAMINE FROM ARIZONA TO FLORIDA

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA – Kanethia Tremeka Steele, 51, of Tampa, Florida, was sentenced to 11 years and three months in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Her son and codefendant, Kenneth Steele, 30, of Phoenix, Arizona, was sentenced to seven years and six months in federal prison for the same charge. The sentences were announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “I applaud the excellent investigative work by our state and federal law enforcement partners to dismantle this drug trafficking enterprise that had flooded our communities with deadly drugs. This is yet another successful prosecution by my office in fulfillment of the promise made by President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to Take Back America from the drug traffickers who have peddled poison on our streets for far too long. Substantial prison time awaits these offenders and any others who try to traffic drugs in the Northern District of Florida.”

Court documents reflect that over a three-year period Kanethia Steele obtained kilogram quantities of methamphetamine and cocaine from Arizona-based drug suppliers on behalf of drug traffickers operating in the counties of Alachua, Dixie, Gilchrist, and Levy. In addition to her packaging the methamphetamine, Steele enlisted the assistance of her son, Kenneth, to transport multi-kilogram shipments of methamphetamine secreted in luggage on commercial flights from Phoenix, Arizona to Orlando, Florida. At the direction of his mother, Kenneth Steele made three flights, transporting over 40 pounds of methamphetamine that was distributed in North Florida.

“Putting this mother and son enterprise out of business will make communities safer,” said DEA Miami Field Division Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter. “These illicit substances—particularly methamphetamine—have the ability to destroy families.”

The convictions were the result of a joint investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Former Assistant United States Attorney Corey Smith and Assistant United States Attorney Jason Coody.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

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.