Buffalo Man Indicted On Cocaine And Crack Cocaine Charges

BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Derrius Cunningham, a/k/a Baby, 41, of Buffalo, NY, with conspiracy to distribute and distribution of cocaine and crack cocaine, and maintaining a drug-involved premises. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of life, and a $10,000,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Charles J. Volkert, Jr. and Brendan T. Cullinane, who are handling the case, stated that according to the indictment, between 2012 and February 20, 2019, the defendant conspired with others to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine in the Box Avenue and Moselle Street area of Buffalo. The indictment also accuses Cunningham of using the residence at 304 Moselle Street, and two businesses, LaPearlaboo’s Bar and Jeoni’s Wingstop, in furtherance of his drug trafficking activities.

The defendant was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer and was released on conditions.

The indictment is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Division; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito, New York Field Division; the Lackawanna Police Department, under the direction of Chief James Michel; the Erie County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Timothy Howard; the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Edward Kennedy; and the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Byron Lockwood.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.