A 53-year-old man was sentenced to over two decades in prison for his part in a scheme to smuggle cocaine and large sums of money to and from Cleveland inside hollowed-out desktop computers.
Curtis Anderson was sentenced to 25 years in prison and five years of supervised release for participating in a conspiracy to distribute and possess five kilograms or more of cocaine, according to the Department of Justice.
In June of 2021, Anderson's coconspirator, Earl King, boarded a flight from Cleveland to Brownsville, Texas, when law enforcement searched his checked bag and found $154,000 inside a hollowed-out desktop computer, authorities said.
Several days later, law enforcement seized a UPS parcel containing about 11 kilograms of cocaine hidden inside a similar hollowed-out desktop computer tower, authorities said.
Police searched King's apartment and seized several cellphones that contained texts saying that King, Anderson, and others were all participating in a conspiracy to smuggle cocaine across the U.S.-Mexican border near Brownsville, then ship the cocaine back up to Cleveland, authorities said.
After reviewing the cellphone evidence, authorities said that Anderson's role consisted of providing the money for King to travel to the border and purchase the cocaine, providing the Cleveland address to where it should be shipped, and then distributing the cocaine in Cleveland.
Prior to Anderson's sentencing, King pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 180 months in prison, authorities said. Another man who was involved also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 100 months in prison.
