Philadelphia Man Sentenced to 100 Months in Major Drug Distribution Case

Rutland, Vermont - The United States Attorney's Office for the District of Vermont stated that on July 17, 2024, Ronald Harris, 32, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by Chief United States District Judge Geoffrey Crawford to a term of 100 months of imprisonment to be followed by a four-year term of supervised release. Harris previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine base, fentanyl and heroin.

According to court records, Harris played a trusted role within the drug trafficking conspiracy, traveling regularly between Philadelphia and Chittenden County, Vermont between October 2021 and January 2023 to transport drugs and money. At the time of his arrest in January 2023, law enforcement seized approximately $98,000.00 from Harris, over one kilogram of crack cocaine and over half a kilogram of heroin from an apartment in Essex Junction from which the conspiracy was operating.

United States Attorney Nikolas P. Kerest commended the collaboration and investigative efforts of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations and the Burlington Police Department during the course of the lengthy investigation.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugenia Cowles. Harris was represented by Assistant Federal Public Defender Steven Barth.

The case was investigated under the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. For more information about Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, please visit Justice.gov/OCDETF.