A Michigan man caught with nearly three pounds of heroin pleaded guilty for scheming to sell the illegal street drug to addicts in Western Pennsylvania, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
Victor Burnett Jr., 38, of Oak Park, Mich. faces a sentence of at least 10 years in prison, U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 18.
Burnett entered his guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Nora Barry Fischer more than two years after a federal wiretap investigation led to his arrest.
On Aug. 22, 2016, agents seized mail that contained about 3.5 ounces of heroin supplied by Burnett headed toward Western Pennsylvania for distribution, prosecutors said.
A single dose of heroin starts at about 0.1-gram.
On Sept. 1, 2016, officials took Burnett into custody after finding 1,366 grams — close to three pounds — of heroin, five guns, ammunition, a money counter, multiple cell phones and more than $20,000 in his Michigan home, prosecutors said.
The wiretap investigation further “established the existence of several overlapping and interrelated drug distribution networks with tentacles” in Western Pennsylvania, northern Ohio, eastern Michigan and the U.S. Virgin Islands, Brady said.
The investigation involved FBI agents from five states and Puerto Rico, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, U.S. Postal Service and FBI Greater Pittsburgh Safe Street Task Force. That included police from Pittsburgh, Wilkinsburg and Allegheny County and the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy L. Johnston prosecuted the case.
