Maurice Phillips
Written by Rhakeem Harris
PHILADELPHIA—Maurice Phillips, 38, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, the
leader of the Phillips Cocaine Organization (“PCO”), was sentenced
today to life in prison for contracting his cousin to kill a federal
witness, announced United States Attorney Michael L. Levy. Phillips was
convicted earlier this month of all eight counts against him, which
included the murder-for-hire of Chineta Glanville and the killing of her
godson, Dane King; conspiracy to use interstate commerce facilities in
the commission of murder-for-hire; use of interstate commerce facilities
in the commission of murder-for-hire; conspiracy to distribute cocaine;
engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise; conspiracy to commit
money laundering; concealment of money laundering; and aiding and
abetting.
This was a bad dude. You wanna talk about gangster. He is the
epitome of the word. Where most criminals would throw in the towel and
accept their fate this guy says I am still in control of my destiny and
if I play my cards right thru strategic manipulation I can change the
outcome of a situation . By yes you guessed it killed a FBI witness. You
already know the block is hot but hey I guess a guy says what do I have
to lose at this point .
Convicted murderer and cocaine trafficker Maurice Phillips was
sentenced to four consecutive life sentences for a contract slaying that
killed a Wyncote woman and her godson eight years ago.U.S. District
Court Judge J. Curtis Joyner handed down sentences to the 38-year-old
Upper Marlboro, Md., man and codefendant Sherman Kemp, who was sentenced
to 30 years in prison. Phillips, Kemp, and David Garcia, who is
awaiting sentencing, were convicted in April of conspiracy to distribute
cocaine. Phillips was also convicted of the two murders.Chineta
Glanville, who reportedly had been a money launderer for Phillips' drug
operation before cooperating with federal authorities, was shot twice in
the back of the head in her home June 25, 2002, by Phillips' cousin,
Bryant Phillips, who was disguised as an Federal Express deliveryman.
The gunman also shot and killed the woman's godson, Dane King, who
happened to be at the Louise Lane house at the time.
The jury, which convicted Phillips on various drug trafficking offenses in April, could not reach a unanimous decision on the death penalty.U.S. attorneys L.C. Wright Jr. and Maureen McCartney prosecuted the federal case for nearly a decade, Phillips headed up a lucrative, multimillion-dollar business in the Mid-Atlantic region that paid for a lavish lifestyle that included luxury cars, expensive parties and real estate holdings. Wright said Phillips' organization sold cocaine in the Philadelphia area, including New Jersey, and in Maryland.The illicit cargo was loaded onto tractor-trailer trucks in Texas and driven to the Philadelphia area. When the truckers returned to the Lone Star State, their vehicle hauled cash to buy more cocaine. Phillips, a New Jersey native who earned a degree at Kean University, was attentive to anything that could hurt his bottom line, according to reports. In 1999, he traveled to a funeral in Texas to make certain one of his cocaine suppliers was truly dead and not just falling down on the job. A key co-conspirator, Chanell Cunningham, attracted street dealers to Phillips' organization by using her feminine wiles, according to the indictment, which cites her romantic involvement with several men who came to depend upon Phillips as their wholesale cocaine supplier.In 2000, Glanville reportedly began working for the cocaine ring depositing cash into bank accounts in the names of fake businesses to disguise the drug proceeds.
In the convoluted shell game, she transferred funds from one account to another, sometimes procuring official bank checks that were used to buy merchandise, cars and homes, according to authorities.The following year, Phillips and Cunningham purchased a franchise in a haute couture New York clothing boutique, Apollo Signature, that they planned to open in Atlanta, Ga. The drug dealers also reportedly intended to buy a residence in Georgia.In June 2002, after learning over dinner that Glanville was cooperating with federal authorities, Phillips persuaded his cousin to kill the woman. He reportedly agreed to $18,000 for slaying the potential witness.Soon after, Phillips and his cousin went to a Federal Express facility in New Jersey, where an employee gave them a company uniform, a package and a gun to aid the deadly plan. Phillips was finally arrested five years after the murders along with at least 10 others implicated in the drug smuggling operation.
The jury, which convicted Phillips on various drug trafficking offenses in April, could not reach a unanimous decision on the death penalty.U.S. attorneys L.C. Wright Jr. and Maureen McCartney prosecuted the federal case for nearly a decade, Phillips headed up a lucrative, multimillion-dollar business in the Mid-Atlantic region that paid for a lavish lifestyle that included luxury cars, expensive parties and real estate holdings. Wright said Phillips' organization sold cocaine in the Philadelphia area, including New Jersey, and in Maryland.The illicit cargo was loaded onto tractor-trailer trucks in Texas and driven to the Philadelphia area. When the truckers returned to the Lone Star State, their vehicle hauled cash to buy more cocaine. Phillips, a New Jersey native who earned a degree at Kean University, was attentive to anything that could hurt his bottom line, according to reports. In 1999, he traveled to a funeral in Texas to make certain one of his cocaine suppliers was truly dead and not just falling down on the job. A key co-conspirator, Chanell Cunningham, attracted street dealers to Phillips' organization by using her feminine wiles, according to the indictment, which cites her romantic involvement with several men who came to depend upon Phillips as their wholesale cocaine supplier.In 2000, Glanville reportedly began working for the cocaine ring depositing cash into bank accounts in the names of fake businesses to disguise the drug proceeds.
In the convoluted shell game, she transferred funds from one account to another, sometimes procuring official bank checks that were used to buy merchandise, cars and homes, according to authorities.The following year, Phillips and Cunningham purchased a franchise in a haute couture New York clothing boutique, Apollo Signature, that they planned to open in Atlanta, Ga. The drug dealers also reportedly intended to buy a residence in Georgia.In June 2002, after learning over dinner that Glanville was cooperating with federal authorities, Phillips persuaded his cousin to kill the woman. He reportedly agreed to $18,000 for slaying the potential witness.Soon after, Phillips and his cousin went to a Federal Express facility in New Jersey, where an employee gave them a company uniform, a package and a gun to aid the deadly plan. Phillips was finally arrested five years after the murders along with at least 10 others implicated in the drug smuggling operation.
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