Eight Defendants Indicted for $4.1 Million Meth Conspiracy

 KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Eight defendants have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a $4.1 million conspiracy to distribute more than 520 kilograms of methamphetamine.

Tina Marie Bailey, 36, and Martin Lee Williams, 58, both of Kansas City, Mo.; Mark Williams Hildebrand II, 31, and Harry Richard Watson Jr., also known as “Ricky,” 35, of St. Joseph, Mo.; Derek Sean Freese, 53, Carl Dewey Williams, 47, and Angeliqua Teresa Collins, 35, all of Moberly, Mo.; and  Joshua Lee Laws, 44, of Unionville, Mo., were charged in a five-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Feb. 23, 2021. The indictment has been unsealed and made public following the arrests and initial court appearances of several defendants this week.

Collins, Laws, and Watson were arrested today. Martin Williams was arrested on Monday, March 1. The remaining defendants were already detained in state custody in separate and unrelated cases.

The federal indictment alleges that all eight defendants participated in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine from Jan. 1, 2017, to Feb. 22, 2021. The indictment also alleges that all eight defendants participated in a related money-laundering conspiracy.

In addition to the conspiracy counts, Bailey, Freese, Laws, Carl Williams, and Martin Williams are charged together with one count of possessing firearms in furtherance of crimes of violence and drug-trafficking crimes. Freese, Carl Williams, and Martin Williams are also charged together in one count of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition. Bailey and Laws are also charged together in one count of being a drug user in possession of firearms and ammunition.

The firearms cited in the indictment include a Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic handgun with a magazine containing 16 live rounds with one round in the chamber; a Tisas 9mm
semi-automatic handgun, a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun, a Smith & Wesson .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun, a Taurus 9mm semi-automatic handgun, a Ruger .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun, a High-Point 9mm semi-automatic handgun, a Smith & Wesson .40-caliber, semi-automatic handgun, a Taurus 9mm semi-automatic handgun, a Ruger 9mm semi-automatic handgun, a Smith & Wesson .40-caliber semi-automatic handgun, a Taurus 9mm semi-automatic handgun, a Ruger 9mm semi-automatic handgun, and various other firearms identified by witnesses, including those traded for methamphetamine.

The indictment also contains a forfeiture count, which would require the defendants to forfeit to the government $4,160,000, which allegedly was received in exchange for the unlawful distribution of more than 520 kilograms of methamphetamine, based on an average street price of $8,000 per kilogram. The defendants must also forfeit the firearms that were seized by law enforcement officers during the investigation.

The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce Rhoades. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department, the FBI, the Buchanan County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. 

OCDETF
This case is part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program.  The OCDETF program is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s drug supply reduction strategy.  OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.  Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement.  The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations, and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.