DES MOINES, IOWA – On July 18, 2022, Pierre Fontain Black, age 31, originally of Chicago, Illinois, was sentenced to 192 months in prison for his role in a large-scale heroin and fentanyl conspiracy.
Black was charged in July 2021 along with 27 individuals as the result of a months’ long investigation into heroin and fentanyl distribution within Des Moines that included the use of court-authorized wiretaps. According to court documents, Black had a large drug distribution network, which he helped run and control. Black prepared and stored the drugs containing heroin and fentanyl, controlled how and to whom drugs were delivered, and monitored drug proceeds. Black and his co-conspirators utilized several phones to communicate solely with drug customers. Black would travel to and from Chicago with large quantities of drugs containing heroin and fentanyl for redistribution in Des Moines. Black and several individuals involved in the drug conspiracy are members of the Black P. Stone Nation criminal street gang. Black pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl in February 2022.
At sentencing, Chief United States District Court Judge Stephanie M. Rose found that Black maintained his Des Moines residence for drug trafficking and that he was an organizer or leader of the drug trafficking organization.
U.S. Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Omaha, the Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force (MINE), and the Central Iowa Gang Task Force (CIGTF).
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.