Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Vegas-based leader in multimillion-dollar drug ring sentenced to prison

A Las Vegas man thought to be one of the kingpins of a multistate, multimillion-dollar drug-trafficking operation is on his way to federal prison, federal prosecutors in Portland, Ore., announced Tuesday.

Kingsley Iyare Osemwengie, 27, was sentenced to more than 17 years in prison on charges that he conspired to distribute Oxycodone and laundered drug proceeds as part of the ring he controlled that extended across 12 states that included Nevada, Washington, Alaska, and Massachusetts.

“This is the largest Oxycodone-trafficking conspiracy ever prosecuted in Oregon, and one of the largest in the nation,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.

In addition to the prison time ordered for Osemwengie, the court forfeited more than $600,000 in drug proceeds.

“Taking the profit out of drug trafficking is another key part of our deterrence strategy,” Marshall said.

Osemwengie, who was on supervised release for two prior federal felonies involving fraud, arranged for tens of thousands of Oxycodone pills to be distributed to customers all over the United States, prosecutors said.

He and an associate, Olubenga Temitope Badamosi, 34, a Nigerian citizen living in Milwaukie, Ore., scheduled 71 different couriers on 774 airplane flights, the prosecution said, to 40 different American cities at a total cost of $96,000 during the life of the conspiracy.

Authorities seized more than 10,000 Oxycodone pills and 1,900 counterfeit Oxycodone during the investigation. Prosecutors said a single 80-milligram oxycodone pill can sell for a range of $30 wholesale to $80 retail.

Prosecutors said Osemwengie created shell companies to disguise the source of his income, which supported a lavish lifestyle. They said Osemwengie had luxury homes in Las Vegas and Miami, Fla., and cars at his disposal including two Mercedes-Benzes and four Bentleys.

A slew of others have been sentenced in connection with the ring.

• Badamosi, 34, Milwaukie, Ore., sentenced to 87 months prison;

• David George Hollins II, 29, Portland, Ore., sentenced to 41 months prison;

• Hung Van Pham, 32, Vancouver, Wash., sentenced to 27 months prison;

• Shaun Wesley Tyler, 32, Las Vegas, sentenced to 37 months prison;

• Marcus Charles Albert, 33, Las Vegas, sentenced to 63 months prison;

• Melvin A. Allotey, 29, Las Vegas, sentenced to 48 months prison;

• Mei Lynn Pham, 32, Portland, Ore., sentenced to 33 months prison;

• Adam Garrott Lewis, 28, Portland, Ore., sentenced to 37 months prison;

• Leamon Dlloyd Madden, 28, Portland, Ore., sentenced to 37 months prison;

• Isaiah Griffith, 28, Portland, Ore., sentenced to 30 months prison;

• Heather O'Rourke, 22, Portland, Ore., sentenced to 27 months prison;

• Christopher Gene Buckland, 35, Portland, Ore., sentenced to 30 months prison;

• Heath Leroy Bloodgood, 42, Portland, Ore., sentenced to 37 months prison;

• Thanh Quoc Nguyen, 32, of Portland, Ore., sentenced to 41 months prison;

• Lee Justin Wells, 34, Tacoma, Wash., sentenced to 41 months prison.

Two others have pleaded guilty to charges relating to the case and are awaiting sentencing:

• Reina Tomiko Nakachi, 27, Las Vegas, June 10;

• Sarah Nilsen, 26, of Miami, FL, scheduled to be sentenced June 17.

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