NEWARK, N.J. — Following a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Newark investigation, a New Jersey woman received a 10-year sentence for possessing cocaine and methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
Mahogany Hawkins, 32, of Newark, received the sentence July 11 at the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey in Camden.
“Let this sentence be a warning to anyone who attempts to distribute illicit drugs under our radar — you will be caught and brought to justice,” said HSI Newark acting Special Agent in Charge William S. Walker. “I’m proud of the teamwork and partnerships with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Newark Department of Public Safety, the FBI and the DEA in this investigation. Together, we prevented deadly drugs from being trafficked into our New Jersey communities. Public safety remains our top priority.”
According to the investigation, in March 2021, two FedEx parcels addressed to “John Brown” in Newark were lawfully intercepted by law enforcement and found to contain cocaine. On March 15, 2021, an undercover officer dressed as a FedEx driver delivered the package to the addressee, and a woman — later identified as Mahogany J. Hawkins — answered the door and accepted the packages. Officers again knocked on Hawkins’s door, this time identifying themselves as law enforcement. Hawkins said she was “getting dressed” but didn’t open the door. The officers forced entry and found Hawkins with her nine-year-old daughter standing in the bedroom.
After obtaining a search warrant, the officers searched Hawkins’ apartment and entered a back room — locked by a keypad — that was a workstation for packaging narcotics. The two FedEx packages from the controlled delivery were found inside a garbage can in the backroom, and the room also contained methamphetamine pills, two plastic bags containing additional cocaine, numerous empty vials used for packaging narcotics, and a heat sealer. Laboratory analysis confirmed substances were cocaine and methamphetamine. Officers also found a loaded handgun and an extended magazine.
In addition to the prison term, Hawkins was sentenced to five years of supervised release.
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