Maryland Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Cocaine Distribution Conspiracy

A Cambridge, Maryland resident has been sentenced to a decade in federal prison for his involvement in a drug trafficking operation that moved significant quantities of cocaine from California to Maryland. Deandrae Stull, 34, received the sentence from U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar for his role in a conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. The sentencing marks the culmination of an investigation involving multiple federal and local law enforcement agencies.

According to information presented as part of the investigation, Stull was a member of a Baltimore-based drug trafficking organization that utilized a sophisticated method known as “ghost bags” to transport cocaine via commercial airlines. This technique involved purchasing flight tickets under false names and then checking luggage containing narcotics without the ticketed passenger’s knowledge. A co-conspirator at the destination would then retrieve the illicitly packed luggage. The investigation revealed that Stull was directly linked to at least 22 such flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Baltimore/Washington International Airport between January and May 2023, with flight records indicating his home address as the billing address for these transactions. Further analysis of internet provider records connected Stull’s cellular phone to at least seven of the Internet Protocol addresses used to purchase these flights.

The string of flights tied to Stull led the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to place him on their flight-watch list. In June 2023, HSI was alerted to Stull’s impending travel from Los Angeles to Baltimore on a flight that also listed “James Davis” as a passenger, a name consistently used by the organization for ghost-bag operations. Records indicated Stull’s address was used as the billing address for ghost-bag flights under the “James Davis” alias on two separate occasions in early April 2023, and Stull himself was a passenger on one of those flights.

On June 15, 2023, law enforcement established surveillance at BWI airport prior to Stull’s arrival. A K-9 unit alerted to the presence of controlled substances in a black suitcase bearing a “James Davis” baggage ticket, which was retrieved by Stull from the carousel. When questioned by authorities after leaving the baggage claim area, Stull claimed the suitcase belonged to a friend. A second K-9 unit also alerted to the suitcase, prompting a search that uncovered approximately 15 kilograms of cocaine. The investigation was conducted under the umbrella of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF), which employs a multi-agency, intelligence-driven approach to dismantle high-level criminal organizations.

Article by Mel Anara, based upon information from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Maryland.

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