TYLER, Texas โ A Jacksonville, Florida, woman pleaded guilty to federal violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced United States Attorney Damien M. Diggs.
Sharena Seay, 39, pleaded guilty to money laundering before Federal Judge John D. Love on April 11, 2024.
According to information presented in court, Seay laundered the proceeds of his drug trafficking operations through cryptocurrencies. The defendant supplied alpha-pyrrolidinopentiophenone (alpha-PVP), often referred to as โflakka,โ and similar synthetic cathinones, such as Eutylone or alpha-PiHP. Seay distributed alpha-PVP and other controlled substances to various clients throughout the United States. Customers who purchased controlled substances from Seay paid for their purchases in cash. Seay laundered the cash proceeds through cryptocurrency to purchase more controlled substances on the dark web and hide his criminal activity.
Seay faces up to 20 years in federal prison at sentencing. The maximum statutory sentence prescribed by Congress is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentence will be determined by the court based on advisory sentencing guidelines and other legal factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the U.S. Probation Office completes a pre-sentence investigation.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation. The OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States through a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The cases were investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service with assistance from the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. , and were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathaniel C. Kummerfeld and D. Ryan Locker.
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