Two men, one of whom is a Baltimore mail carrier, have pleaded guilty to smuggling marijuana into the city through the U.S. Postal Service. Both men face decades in federal prison as punishment for their convictions, according to a report in local media.
Michael Gray pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiracy to distribute marijuana this week and could spend up to 20 years in prison for his role in the smuggling operation. William McRae, an employee of the Postal Service, pleaded guilty earlier this year to conspiracy to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana and faces incarceration of up to 40 years.
Investigators discovered that since early 2017, more than 200 packages deemed to be suspicious had all been shipped from California to the 21223 ZIP code in Baltimore. The parcels had all been sent to addresses that were on McRae’s carrier route, according to court documents.
On November 17, 2017, investigators learned that eight Priority Mail packages were on their way to the same Baltimore address at 1100 Hollins Street. Three of the parcels were intercepted en route and each was found to contain approximately one kilogram of a green plant material that tested positive for marijuana.
Suspicious Packages Lead to Surveillance of Mail Carrier
In early January 2018, investigators discovered that two more packages, each weighing 10 pounds, were being shipped to the same Baltimore address from California. McRae’s mail route was then put under surveillance by investigators, who saw McRae park his USPS vehicle on the street before being met by another man later identified as Gray, who arrived in a silver Volvo and parked behind the mail carrier.
Investigators watched as McRae handed a package to Gray. USPS records revealed that