New Orleans Man Guilty of Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Distribution and Committing Federal Firearms Offense (DOJ)

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA -LIONEL WINDING, JR. ("WINDING"), age 20, pleaded guilty on April 14, 2026 before Chief U.S. District Judge Wendy B. Vitter to seven federal drug and gun offenses, announced U.S. Attorney David I. Courcelle.

WINDING pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute, and possess with intent to distribute, 400 grams or more of fentanyl and 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(A), and 846; two counts of distributing various quantities of fentanyl, two counts of distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, and one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(B), (b)(1)(C), and (b)(1)(D); and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A)(i).

According to court documents, over the course of five transactions between November 2024 and January 2025, WINDING, and his co-conspirators, sold fentanyl, methamphetamine, and firearms to individuals WINDING believed to be legitimate buyers. WINDING was personally armed with a handgun during two of those transactions. WINDING was arrested on January 30, 2025. Law enforcement officers searched the motel room where he was staying and recovered cocaine and marijuana that WINDING intended to sell, and a Glock Model 22 firearm equipped with a drum magazine and loaded with 25 rounds of ammunition.

As to his conspiracy conviction, WINDING faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison up to life, up to a $10,000,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release up to life. As to his convictions for distributing 40 grams or more of fentanyl and 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, WINDING faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison up to 40 years, up to a $5,000,000 fine, and at least four years of supervised release up to life. As to his convictions for distributing a quantity of fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana, WINDING faces up to 20 years in prison, up to a $1,000,000 fine, and a mandatory minimum of 3 years of supervised release up to life. As to his conviction for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, WINDING faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years up to life imprisonment, which must run consecutively to any other sentence, up to a $250,000 fine, and up to five years of supervised release. Each conviction also carries a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney David Berman of the Violent Crime Unit is in charge of the prosecution.