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2 Texas Men and a Louisiana Man Have Been Sentenced on Separate Drug and Firearms Charges in Louisiana

Louisiana – United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced that three defendants, two from Texas and one from Louisiana, have been sentenced in U.S. District Court in Lafayette, Louisiana, on drug and firearms charges.

Chief United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks, Jr. sentenced two of the defendants as follows:

Desmond Francois, 32, of Houston, Texas, was sentenced to 120 months in prison and 5 years of supervised release for cocaine possession with intent to distribute. On May 11, 2017, Lafayette Police Department officers began a bus interdiction at the Greyhound Bus Station in downtown Lafayette, Louisiana. Officers from law enforcement boarded the bus, identified themselves, and informed the passengers of the reason for their stop. During their search of the bus, officers discovered two black backpacks on the floor, a silver purse, and a gray hoodie and phone on the seat in row 6. A red and black plaid bag hung directly above that seat.

Row 6 remained empty after all passengers boarded the bus and returned to their seats. Officers asked each passenger if the items belonged to anyone in the room, but no one claimed them. One of the passengers, however, told the officer that he saw the male and female from row 6 run when they saw law enforcement boarding the bus. Francois was later identified as the male. There was approximately ten kilograms of cocaine and a Greyhound bus ticket for passenger Desmond Francois inside the backpack from row 6. Further investigation revealed that Francois was a member of a drug trafficking organization in the Houston area with a history of drug trafficking in Louisiana.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Lafayette Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamilla A. Bynog.

On drug trafficking charges, Lionel Hill, Jr., 41, of Port Arthur, Texas, was sentenced to 60 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release. On May 6, 2021, officers from the New Iberia Police Department pulled over a vehicle driven by Hill for a traffic violation. Hill agreed to a search of his person, and officers discovered 50.6 grams of fentanyl and 28.7 grams of methamphetamine. Hill confessed to officers that he had the drugs with the intent to distribute them. Later tests confirmed that the substance contained detectable levels of fentanyl.

On October 21, 2021, Hill pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute over 40 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of N-phenyl-N-[1-(2-phenylethyl)-4-piperidinyl] propanamide, a Schedule II narcotic controlled substance.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the New Iberia Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel J. Vermaelen.

Jacob Wilson Zirlott, 39, of Franklin, Louisiana, was sentenced by United States District Judge David C. Joseph to 70 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Officers from the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Zirlott’s home on June 19, 2017. During their search, deputies discovered an AR-15 rifle in the living room, as well as several magazines and drug paraphernalia. Zirlott admitted that he owned the gun despite the fact that he was a convicted felon and was aware that he was prohibited from possessing any firearm. Zirlott has a history of felony convictions, including robbery in Florida (1999) and aggravated second degree battery in Louisiana (2010).

The case was investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John W. Nickel.

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