New Orleans Man Guilty of Felony Drug and Gun Charges (DOJ)

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - On June 5, 2026, defendant, PHALANDERS RASHAAD KING ("KING"), age 37, pleaded guilty, before U.S. District Judge Barry W. Ashe to Count One, Count Two, Count Three, Count Four, Count Five, and Count Six of the Superseding Bill of Information pending against him, announced United States Attorney David I. Courcelle.

Count One charged the defendant with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and distribute, five (5) grams or more of methamphetamine, forty (40) grams or more of a mixture of fentanyl, and quantities of heroin and marijuana, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(B), 841(b)(1)(C), 841(b)(1)(D) and 846. Count Two charged the defendant with distribution of heroin, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(C). Count Three charged the defendant with distribution of forty (40) grams or more of fentanyl, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B). Count Four charged the defendant with possession with intent to distribute five (5) grams or more of methamphetamine, and quantities of heroin and cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(B), and 841(b)(1)(C). Count Five charged the defendant with possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A)(i). Count Six charged the defendant with maintaining a drug-involved premises, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 856(a)(1).

As to Count One, Three, and Four, KING faces a term of imprisonment of between 5 and 40 years, a fine of up to $5,000,000 and at least four years of supervised release. For Count Two, the maximum penalty is up to twenty years imprisonment, a fine of up to $1,000,000, and at least three years of supervised release. For Count Five, a violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 924(c)(1)(A)(i), the maximum penalties are between 5 years and up to life imprisonment, which must run consecutively to any other sentence of imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to five years of supervised release. For Count Six, the penalty is up to 20 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $500,000, and up to three years of supervised release. KING also faces payment of a mandatory special assessment fee of $100 for each count to which he pled guilty. He is scheduled for sentencing on September 17, 2026.

According to court documents, on August 24, 2023, undercover agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) conducted an operation to locate fentanyl distributors in the French Quarter. Through this effort, agents located KING's co-defendants. Through 2023 and into 2024, undercover agents conducted ten purchases of fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine from KING's co-defendants, and eventually from KING himself. Through surveillance operations and a court-authorized wire interception of KING's phone, agents established that KING conspired with his co-defendants to distribute these drugs, utilizing an apartment and a storefront that KING maintained in the Central Business District of New Orleans. Agents executed a search warrant on those two locations in May 2024, that allowed the recovery of additional controlled substances, fourteen firearms, and over $10,000 in U.S. currency. In total, over the course of the investigation, agents recovered over 300 grams of fentanyl and over 300 grams of methamphetamine from members of the conspiracy.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Dawkins and Brittany L. Reed of the Violent Crime Unit.