Trial is underway in a federal court in Kansas for three members of an alleged $17 million drug ring that included seven Mendocino County residents, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Los Rovell Dahda, identified as one of the 43-member organization's ring leaders, his twin brother, Roosevelt Rico Dahda, both of Lawrence, Kan., and Justin Cherif Pickel, of San Lorenzo, Calif., are in a trial that is expected to last at least a month, said Jim Cross, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Los Dahda and Chad Eugene Bauman headed the organization and made millions as leaders of the drug trafficking organization, which operated from 2005 to 2012, according statements made earlier by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The Mendocino County defendants primarily were accused of supplying the ring with marijuana and cocaine.
All reached plea agreements with the U.S. Attorney's Office before the trial began, the last two early this month, Cross said.
None of them have been sentenced, he said. All face significant prison time.
The latest to plead guilty were John P. McMillan and his girlfriend, Erin Keller, long-time Mendocino residents and volunteer firefighters. Erin Keller also ran an art studio. They pleaded guilty on April 2 to conspiracy to manufacture and possess with the intent to distribute marijuana, Cross said. Each faces up to five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000, he said.
On March 31, Richard Smith pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture and possess with the intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana, he said. That charge carries a potential sentence of between five years and 40 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million, Cross said.
Four other Mendocino County defendants who pleaded guilty to more serious charges early last year face sentences of 10 years to life in prison and fines of up to $10 million.
Henry "Hank" McCusker, Jeffrey Wall and James and Sarah Soderling pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine and 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana, according to Cross and federal court documents.
The charges stem from a case that began in 2008 when a man arrested during a domestic violence investigation in Kansas offered up information on local drug dealers, according to federal court documents. Federal agents got involved in 2011.
The federal indictment that included more than 40 defendants and 100 criminal counts initially was filed in July 2012.
Los Dahda and Chad Bauman originally were buying pot from Mexican and Canadian sources, according to court documents. They later switched to purchasing California pot, which they could buy for less, between $1,800 and $2,800 per pound. They sold it for between $3,500 and $4,800 per pound, according to court documents.
Investigators linked the ring leaders to the other defendants through tapped phone calls, emails and intercepted packages.
You can reach Staff Writer Glenda Anderson at 462-6473 or glenda.anderson@pressdemocrat.com
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