3 convicted of scheme to smuggle drugs into federal prisons
Three Pittsburgh-area residents were convicted Wednesday by a federal jury on drug distribution and money-laundering charges in connection with a drug ring operating within the federal prison system, according to U.S. Attorney Cindy Chung.
Noah Landfried, 37, of Moon Township; Michel Cercone, 48, of Sewickley; and Anthony Smith, 30, of Homestead, were convicted of conspiracy to distribute both Schedule I and II drugs between 2017 and 2019.
Landfried was convicted on a separate charge of distributing at least 40 grams of a mixture containing fentanyl in 2018.
Chung said that Landfried was the leader of the conspiracy to bring cocaine, heroin and fentanyl into federal prisons.
“Inmate accounts were used to collect and make payments for the drugs,” Chung said in a news release. “Landfried and Cercone were also convicted of laundering the drug proceeds.”
Landfried and Smith were both on federal supervised release for previous drug trafficking convictions when the crimes occurred, federal officials said.
Chung said the conspiracy led to more than 5 kilograms of cocaine, 100 grams of heroin and 40 grams of fentanyl being brought into federal prisons.
All three will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Nicholas Ranjan at a date to be determined.
Patrick Varine is a TribLive reporter covering Delmont, Export and Murrysville. He is a Western Pennsylvania native and joined the Trib in 2010 after working as a reporter and editor with the former Dover Post Co. in Delaware. He can be reached at pvarine@triblive.com.
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