An East St. Louis man has been slammed with an 8-plus year prison term for his role in a drug-dealing and money-laundering operation. Donald B. Perkins, 37, received a 97-month sentence after he pled guilty to multiple charges, including money laundering conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute marijuana, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported.
Perkins was busted trying to illegally wash over a cool $1.2 million in drug money, going to great lengths to conceal the origins of his dirty cash through cash exchanges and cashier’s checks. In a clear attempt to truly keep his financial dealings in the shadows, Perkins, together with a co-defendant, executed an elaborate scheme to make the ill-gotten gains appear clean, according to a statement obtained by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The law came down hard on Perkins when law enforcement executed a search warrant on his residence in November 2021. There, over 550 kilograms of marijuana were seized, along with the discovery of a firearm. Perkins, prohibited from owning a gun due to previous felony convictions, added another count to his rap sheet with the illegal possession of a weapon.
Rachelle Aud Crowe, the U.S. Attorney, minced no words when underscoring the severity of Perkins's actions. "This prison sentence reflects the seriousness of breaking the law by distributing illegal drugs, laundering the proceeds and unlawfully having a firearm," she affirmed in a statement. The case, significantly advanced by the efforts of IRS Criminal Investigation and DEA agents, was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Quinley.
The case was part of the broader Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces initiative, employing multi-agency muscle to dismantle drug trafficking operations. By targeting both the sale of drugs and the financial chicanery that propels its market, Perkins's conviction stands as a warning to others enmeshed in such illegal enterprise.
Meanwhile, Byron Robinson, 60, of Florissant, Missouri, implicated alongside Perkins for money laundering conspiracy, managed to skirt a prison term, landing himself three years on probation instead, as of September 2023.
Melissa McFadden, Assistant Special Agent in Charge at IRS Criminal Investigation, emphasized the importance of cutting the economic lifelines of drug traders. “The act of laundering ill-gotten gains is as important to drug dealers as the distribution of illegal drugs," McFadden noted, signaling the crucial role of financial investigations in drug law enforcement.
