Cleveland Armed Drug Dealer Sentenced to More Than 24 Years in Prison

CLEVELAND - A 43-year-old man has been sentenced to prison for selling illegal narcotics throughout Cuyahoga County and the surrounding areas.

Omari Clifton, of Garfield Heights, Ohio, was sentenced to 292 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Patricia A. Gaughan for the following offenses:

• Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl
• Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine
• Felon in Possession of a Firearm; previous convictions include Drug Trafficking in 2021 and 2018; Drug Possession in 2015; and Felonious Assault in 2013
• Possessing a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime

Clifton was also ordered to serve four years of supervised release after imprisonment.

According to court documents, in October 2024, a local drug task force began an investigation into suspected trafficking of crack cocaine in Northeast Ohio. Clifton was identified as a drug trafficker. In December 2024, a search warrant was executed at his residence in Garfield Heights, where task force officers seized distribution quantities of fentanyl, cocaine, cocaine base (crack), scales, baggies multiple cellphones, and cash. Two loaded firearms- a Smith & Wesson 9mm handgun and a Glock 23 .40 caliber handgun -and ammunition were also seized.

This investigation was conducted by the Southeast Area Law Enforcement Task Force and the FBI Cleveland Division Cartel, Gang, Narcotics, and Laundering Task Force.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Payum Doroodian for the Northern District of Ohio.