A K-9 alert at Frederick W. Smith International Airport unraveled a cross-country drug run last year, and now the man behind it is headed to federal prison for 12 years. Lonnie Moore Jr., 38, was sentenced to 144 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release after pleading guilty to possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
Moore had flown into Memphis from Los Angeles on August 22, 2025, when airport police intercepted his luggage, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. A K-9 officer indicated that Moore's bags contained narcotics, and a search turned up 9.10 pounds of laboratory-verified methamphetamine, along with 13.10 pounds of marijuana, per the same account. He was charged with smuggling methamphetamine at the airport and reportedly pleaded guilty to the charges on April 15, 2026, according to WATN.
Court records cited by the Department of Justice show Moore had a prior conviction in Mississippi for possession of cocaine and methamphetamine. Federal sentences carry no parole eligibility.
Officials Frame the Case as a Warning to Traffickers
U.S. Attorney Michael Dunavant said drug smugglers who use domestic air travel to move methamphetamine threaten not only the critical infrastructure of Memphis International Airport but also the public safety of area residents, according to WATN's report. Dunavant added that law enforcement partners will continue working to catch, convict and punish drug smugglers moving through the region.
DEA Special Agent in Charge Jim Scott said the case should serve as a warning to prospective drug traffickers, per the same WATN account, adding that the DEA and its law enforcement partners will find drug traffickers and bring them to justice.
A Recurring Pattern at a Major Air Cargo Hub
Moore's arrest fits a pattern federal authorities have flagged repeatedly at Memphis's airport, which served 4.8 million passengers and processed 6.5 billion tons of air cargo in 2025, according to the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority. A DEA-led task force involving airport police and federal partners has also investigated drug trafficking at Los Angeles International Airport, as Hoodline has previously reported.
Similar baggage busts have surfaced at the same airport before. In April 2024, Hoodline reported that a woman was carrying 56 pounds of marijuana in her luggage. And in December 2025, authorities seized eight pounds of methamphetamine and fluorofentanyl during a narcotics operation.
Part of a Broader West-to-Mid-South Pipeline
Federal statute 21 U.S.C. § 841 addresses offenses involving methamphetamine. Moore's case is a federal prosecution involving bulk narcotics moved from Los Angeles through a domestic airport.
On February 27, a defendant in a Tampa case was sentenced to 24 years and six months in prison in a case involving 132 pounds of methamphetamine.
