Six men, including five from Chicago, allegedly shipped methamphetamine from Sacramento, California, and sold it in and around Chicago, according to federal prosecutors.
Stephen Jenkins, 44; Daniel Heise, 40; Donald Grenier, 61; Jose Hernadez, 45; William Koch, 36; and Keith McCormick, 51, are all charged with drug trafficking, according to the U.S. attorney’s office for the northern district of Illinois.
Jenkins, Heise, Grenier, Hernandez and Koch are all from Chicago, and McCormick, who is also known as Keith Lopez, is from Sacramento, prosecutors said. Heise is also facing a charge of possession of a firearm in the case.
From February 2022 to February 2023, McCormick shipped parcels containing methamphetamine via U.S. Postal Service from Sacramento to Chicago at the direction of Jenkins and Heise, prosecutors said.
Law enforcement officials recovered more than 200 parcels containing suspected methamphetamine during their investigation.
Investigators were able to positively identify the drug in at least 10 of the packages, including in packages intended for Grenier, McCormick, Koch, Hernandez and Heise.
Jenkins and Heise, along with other members of the organization, allegedly shipped drug proceeds back to McCormick via FedEx and UPS, prosecutors said.
Drug-trafficking sentences for the men, if convicted, can vary from no less than five years up to life in federal prison, depending on the amount of methamphetamine each man is accused of trafficking, the U.S. attorney’s office said.
