DES MOINES, Iowa — A statement released last week by the U.S. Justice Department said 15 Des Moines men are facing federal drug and firearms criminal charges as part of a lengthy federal and state investigation of the Des Moines-based C-Block criminal street gang and associated cocaine-trafficking organizations.
Many of the federal defendants were arrested last week. One arrestee, William Charles Gray, 22, of Des Moines, was charged in a state complaint and will appear in Polk County District Court, the Justice Department statement said.
The charges were announced jointly March 28 by U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa Marc Krickbaum, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Omaha Field Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Randall Thysse, Polk County Attorney John P. Sarcone and Des Moines Police Department Chief Dana Wingert.
The arrests followed a months-long investigation conducted by the FBI’s Central Iowa Gang Task Force, which includes the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Dallas County Sheriff’s office, Polk County Sheriff’s office, Story County Sheriff’s office and Altoona Police Department.
The 15 federal defendants were charged across two complaint affidavits, according to the Justice Department statement, stemming from a months-long investigation of the Des Moines-based C-Block criminal street gang. The complaints allege that Daeron Merrett, 31, of Des Moines, Marshaun Merrett, 31, of Des Moines and Barry Adair Jr., 29, of Des Moines constitute the leadership of C-Block, a criminal street gang based in Des Moines.
The complaints described C-Block’s involvement in the distribution in the Des Moines area of controlled substances, particularly cocaine. In December 2018, law enforcement obtained court authorization to intercept telephone communications of Johnnathan Frencher, 26, of Des Moines, who was receiving cocaine from Daeron Merrett for redistribution in Des Moines.
Law enforcement later received court authorization to intercept the telephone communications of Merrett, leading to further identification of his cocaine trafficking network. The primary complaint alleges that in late January 2019, Merrett and Marcus Hunt, 37, of Des Moines began traveling to the Chicago and Gary, Ind., areas to buy cocaine.
Cordney Smith, 43, of Gary allegedly brokered at least four drug transactions for Merrett and Hunt, who obtained more than 500 grams of cocaine for distribution in Des Moines.
The complaint identifies additional customers and redistributors of cocaine who have been charged with drug conspiracy and distribution. The 15 defendants include:
- Daeron Merrett, 31, of Des Moines
- Marshaun Merrett, 31, of Des Moines
- Barry Adair Jr., 29, of Des Moines
- Marcus Hunt, 37, of Des Moines
- Cordney Smith, 43, of Gary, Ind.
- Johnnathan Frencher, 26, of Des Moines
- Freddie Frencher Jr., 28, of Des Moines
- Jose Antonio Sanchez Jr., 25, of Des Moines
- Conrad Fred Taylor Jr., 32, of Des Moines
- Jhamel Donta Booker, 35, of Des Moines
- Cornelius Neal Pope, 40, of Des Moines
- Peter E. Cooper Jr., 32, of Des Moines
- Walter Stefon Burgs, 48, of Des Moines
- Antowan Leon Taylor, 40, of Des Moines
- Paul Joseph Castelline, 33, of Des Moines
In addition to federal drug charges, several other defendants were charged with federal firearms offenses and crimes of violence. Marshaun Merrett was charged with unlawfully possessing an extended magazine loaded with 30 rounds of ammunition during a traffic stop Dec. 26, 2018.
Brothers Johnnathan and Freddie Frencher Jr., 28, of Des Moines were charged with attempted Hobbs Act robbery and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, stemming from an incident Dec. 13, 2018.
The complaint described intercepted communications between the Frenchers in which they planned to commit an armed home-invasion robbery of another drug trafficker in Des Moines, who possessed marijuana and marijuana wax in his residence in Des Moines.
In an effort to prevent the planned robbery by force, the Des Moines Police Department conducted a traffic stop of the vehicle in which the Frenchers were passengers while traveling en route to the suspected home-invasion location.
A search of that vehicle yielded loaded, Glock firearms under each of the Frencher brothers’ seats. Johnnathan Frencher was charged with possessing a firearm as a felon, based on a 2014 drug conviction in the Polk County District Court.
The months-long investigation culminated in the execution March 27 of federal narcotics and firearms search warrants at a dozen Des Moines locations.
The charges in the cases carry maximum penalties of between 10 years and life imprisonment. If the defendants are convicted, the judge must impose reasonable sentences under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory U.S. sentencing guidelines.
