Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman announced that a Jamaican recording artist was convicted at trial today of charges including first-degree distribution of narcotics for his role in an international drug ring that used the U.S. Mail and other parcel delivery services to ship multiple kilograms of cocaine from California into New Jersey. A woman who distributed drugs for the ring in New Jersey also was convicted today in the same trial.
Andrew K. Davis, 37, of Kingston, Jamaica (formerly of Swedesboro, N.J.), a well-known Jamaican dancehall DJ who records under the name “Flippa Mafia” and “Flippa Moggela,” was found guilty today by a Camden County jury of first-degree distribution of cocaine, second-degree money laundering, and second-degree conspiracy.
The first-degree charge carries a sentence of 10 to 20 years in state prison, while the second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in prison. The jury verdict followed a seven-week trial before Superior Court Judge John T. Kelley in Camden, N.J. The jury could not reach a unanimous verdict on the first-degree charge of leading a narcotics trafficking network.
Davis’ co-defendant in the trial, Marsha G. Bernard, 34, of Cherry Hill, also was convicted of first-degree distribution of cocaine, second-degree money laundering, and second-degree conspiracy.
Bernard received large shipments of cocaine in New Jersey and distributed them to other drug traffickers under the direction of Davis and two of his brothers who previously pleaded guilty in this case, Kemar Davis and Roger Davis.
In the course of the investigation, detectives recovered more than 26 kilograms of cocaine, worth more than $960,000, two handguns, and more than $500,000 in cash.
On Sept. 14, 2015, Kemar Davis, 25, of Hollywood, Calif., who ran the ring with his brother Andrew, pleaded guilty to leading a narcotics trafficking network before Judge Kelley. Under his plea agreement, the state will recommend that Kemar Davis be sentenced to 20 years in state prison, with a 12-year period of parole ineligibility. Another brother, Roger Davis, 37, of Roslyn, Pa., pleaded guilty on Sept. 14 to first-degree possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.
The state will recommend that Roger Davis be sentenced to 10 years in state prison, with three years of parole ineligibility.
The investigation targeted the ring’s shipment of large quantities of cocaine through parcel delivery services to New Jersey for bulk distribution to other narcotics suppliers and dealers. Andrew Davis directed drug trafficking activities of the ring from various locations in Jamaica, California and New Jersey, with the help of his brother Kemar. The investigation began in March 2011, when detectives and agents from the Camden High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force and the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office seized two packages from a mail facility in Marlton destined for receipt by Andrew Davis and Marsha Bernard. Each package contained four kilograms of cocaine.
In December 2012, Andrew and Kemar Davis traveled to Jamaica. Andrew remained in Jamaica, but he continued to control activities of the ring by directing Kemar and others. Kemar returned to the U.S. and oversaw the shipment of kilogram quantities of cocaine from California to New Jersey. Bernard and other defendants received the drugs and distributed them to dealers in New Jersey, under the direction of the Davis brothers. The purchasers bought kilogram quantities of cocaine from the Davis organization. Bernard and Roger Davis handled the drug proceeds, sending them to Andrew Davis in Jamaica and Kemar Davis in California.
Bernard was arrested on March 15, 2013, when State Police detectives and DEA agents coordinated arrests in Operation Next Day Air to coincide with the arrival of a significant shipment of cocaine from California. Kemar Davis was arrested in Los Angeles that same day by DEA agents. Andrew Davis was arrested in Los Angeles on Sept. 16, 2013 by members of the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force.