Tyrone Hampton, the leader of a multi-state drug trafficking organization operating in Alaska, has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for his role in distributing heroin and fentanyl. The 44-year-old California man also received 10 years of supervised release following his prison term, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and money laundering conspiracy.
In Spring 2022, Hampton moved his pregnant wife, Stephanie Blanchard, and two associates, Keith Crossley and Lawrence McGirt, from Southern California to Alaska to establish their drug operation. The group, which included Southern California gang members, primarily sold heroin and fentanyl, utilizing an apartment in Wasilla as one of their trafficking locations.
Their activities came to light when a landlord reported suspicious activity at the Wasilla apartment. Hampton's main supplier, Kevyn Watson, a fellow gang member serving a 40-year prison sentence in Oklahoma, coordinated drug shipments to Alaska via mail using contraband cellphones. In April 2022, Hampton's cousin, Charles Holyfield, mailed over 2,500 fentanyl pills from Arizona, concealed within pillows, to the Wasilla apartment. UPS intercepted this package due to a missing apartment number, discovered the pills, and alerted the Alaska State Troopers (AST).
AST subsequently conducted a controlled delivery of the package, now containing sham drugs, and executed a search warrant, leading to the arrests of Hampton, Holyfield, McGirt, and Crossley. Investigators also uncovered a makeshift methamphetamine lab. Further investigation revealed another package containing one kilogram of heroin, referred to as "the whole chalupa," which Watson and Hampton had coordinated. Court documents showed Hampton deposited over $26,900 into his bank account in just six weeks with no legitimate income, indicating significant drug proceeds.
U.S. Attorney Michael J. Heyman for the District of Alaska said, "Mr. Hampton is a career criminal that moved his family and friends to Alaska for the sole purpose of peddling poison to our communities." Special Agent in Charge Matthew Schlegel of the FBI Anchorage Field Office added that Hampton "recklessly endangering countless lives in Alaska and in the Lower 48." The Court emphasized Hampton's profit motive, his preying upon vulnerabilities, and his history as a career offender.
Several co-defendants also faced sentencing: Stephanie Blanchard received two and a half years, Keith Crossley nearly two years and eight months, and Kevyn Watson was sentenced to 15 years. Charles Holyfield received time served, while Lawrence McGirt's case was dismissed due to mental illness. This prosecution was a collaborative effort by the FBI Anchorage Field Office, Alaska State Troopers, IRS Criminal Investigation, and other agencies, as part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative aimed at dismantling criminal cartels and transnational organizations.