Louisiana Woman Sentenced for Trafficking Cocaine and Interstate Travel in Aid of Racketeering

New Orleans, Louisiana – On July 6, 2022, U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that United States District Judge Mary Ann Vial Lemmon sentenced Tracy Morgan, age 51, a resident of LaPlace, Louisiana, on June 30, 2022, to a total of 46 months (3 years, 10 months) in the Bureau of Prisons for two charges, consisting first of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of cocaine hydrochloride and second of interstate and foreign travel or transportation in aid of racketeering.

According to court records, Morgan transported money from Louisiana to Texas in August 2019 on behalf of co-conspirator Ellis Batiste, Sr. to pay for 10 kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride, which she then transported back to Louisiana, where she was stopped and arrested by law enforcement.

During the investigation, police seized more than 15 kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride and more than 1 kilogram of fentanyl. The vast majority of these controlled substances were being transported from Houston, Texas into Louisiana’s Eastern District.

Morgan was sentenced to 46 months in prison, followed by three (3) years of supervised release by District Judge Lemmon. Morgan was also ordered by Judge Lemmon to pay a $100 mandatory special assessment fee for each charge.

This prosecution is part of an investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). OCDETF uses a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that pose a threat to the United States.

The case was investigated by the US Drug Enforcement Administration and the Sheriff’s Office of Saint John the Baptist. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Usher.