A 24-year-old Tarpon Springs man arrested last year in an investigation of a suspected drug ring in North Pinellas and west Pasco was convicted Wednesday, prosecutors said.
A federal jury in Tampa found Robert L. Reynolds of 721 Disston Ave. guilty of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute powder cocaine. A sentencing date has not been set yet, and it was not clear Wednesday what the maximum sentence could be.
Federal prosecutors say that for several years Reynolds received powder cocaine from various suppliers in Pinellas and Pasco and cooked it into crack cocaine to be sold. Starting in 2002, Reynolds received the cocaine at his barbershop on S Disston Avenue, prosecutors say.
Reynolds was one of about three dozen people arrested as part of a local, state and federal operation called Bahama Breeze. The investigation began in August 2002 and involved more than a dozen agencies, including the Tarpon Springs Police Department and the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
After an initial round of arrests in July 2003, officials said the drug ring brought about 25 kilograms, or about 55 pounds, of cocaine into western Pasco and northern Pinellas counties each month. The street value of 25 kilos is more than $500,000. The drugs came from the Bahamas and through South Florida to this area, according to authorities.
Reynolds was in a second batch of suspects picked up in December 2003. Prosecutors say he was charged in a federal indictment with participating in a conspiracy with five others. Court records show that four other defendants have entered guilty pleas and that one of those defendants has been sentenced to 87 months in prison and 60 months of supervised release. Prosecutors say a sixth defendant remains a fugitive.
Times researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.
