Former Jay-Z business associate and Roc-A-Fella Records co-founder Kareem “Biggs” Burke has reportedly pleaded guilty to charges relating to a major drug trafficking case.
Details of the guilty plea emerged on-line Thursday (March 15) evening.
A former Jay-Z business partner who invested in Roc-A-Fella Records pleaded guilty Thursday to participating in a massive marijuana trafficking ring, federal prosecutors said. Kareem (Biggs) Burke, 38, faces five to six years in prison during his sentencing May 18 for conspiring to distribute more than 100 kilos of marijuana, said Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara. Under the plea deal, Burke agreed to forfeit cash, his house and a BMW, Bharara said. (New York Daily News)
While not scheduled for sentencing until May, Biggs could end up doing 40 years in the slammer.
Burke pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, more than 100 kilograms of marijuana, in connection with his participation in a massive pot trafficking ring. As a result of the plea, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison when he is sentenced May 18. (North Jersey)
Biggs and over 40 other individuals were arrested in October 2010 on the drug trafficking charges.
Kareem Burke, also known as Biggs, was arrested at his home in Bergen, New Jersey, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers said. Another 44 people have been arrested and charged with drug trafficking, while five remain at large, prosecutors said in a statement. Among the 45 arrested was Matthew Stang, a writer and advertising representative for High Times, a New York-based marijuana advocacy magazine. All 50 people charged face a maximum sentence of life in prison. (ABC News)
Initial reports claimed the investigation had been in effect for nearly two years.
Jim Hayes, head of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New York, said Friday that the arrests are the result of an 18-month investigation. He says agents seized $1 million and almost 200 pounds of marijuana. Authorities say the marijuana was grown in Florida and smuggled to New York. It wasn’t immediately clear as to what role Burke played in the operation. Along with Jay-Z and Damon Dash, he founded Roc-A-Fella in the 1990’s. (WPIX)
