In a decisive blow to a major drug trafficking network, Stephen Griffin Jr., the ringleader behind the shipment of extensive quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl to the St. Louis region, has been handed a 27-year sentence by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark, as per federal authorities. In a case that unfolded over the past few years, Griffin and his associates saw the import of these drugs in bulk from Arizona and California, exploiting the mail system and a home health care business front to supply the narcotics, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Missouri.
The scale of Griffin's operation was brought to light with the seizure of 39 firearms, nearly 500 pounds of meth, 22 pounds of heroin, 49 pounds of fentanyl, among other assets totaling over $500,000, Griffin, aged 51, already burdened with a criminal past of heroin trafficking, saw a compounded sentence for violating a supervised release from a 2015 case and now his future imprisoned reflecting the gravity of his actions his top lieutenant, Troy Mills, received a 16-year sentence with 20 others indicted and a number of them, including Crystal Miller who managed stash houses for the organization, already sentenced to 20 years back in December 2023.
The conviction marks a major step in dismantling a drug operation that used mail packages and couriers to distribute narcotics through a health care business. The network was linked to the opioid fentanyl, which has caused numerous deaths nationwide. Stephen Griffin pleaded guilty and admitted his role as federal agencies moved to shut down the operation.
Michael Davis, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s St. Louis Division, said Griffin’s actions had serious consequences for families affected by fentanyl and methamphetamine. Ruth Mendonça, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Chicago Division, emphasized the collaboration among federal agencies. The investigation, led by the DEA, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and U.S. Marshals Service, was part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) program.
