SAVANNAH, Ga. (WRBL) — A Savannah man has pled guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, along with two counts of maintaining a drug involved premises.
Kashif Collins, 35, also know as ‘Fat Boy’, was sentenced to 220 months in prison for his drug-related offenses. He will serve five years of supervised release after his prison sentence, according to the United States Attorney’s Office.
He is being held as the leader of a major drug trafficking network in the Coastal Georgia region. He bought kilograms worth of cocaine, and supervised lower-level drug dealers in selling out of “trap houses”.
This drug trafficking network was investigated by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). The investigation, Operation Deadlier Catch, traced a major source of cocaine distributed in Chatham County back to the trafficking organization that transported the drugs from Mexico through a California source.
To further trace the source of supply and distribution, investigators monitored and eventually infiltrated the drug trafficking network. Through a series of searches, they seized the following:
- more than 24 kilograms of cocaine
- over 180 pounds of marijuana
- 3 kilos of heroin
- at least 14 firearms
The network was on-going from as early as 2016, through 2020, when the 27-count indictment, U.S.A. vs. Bulloch, named 29 defendants. Of these defendants, 14 await trial, 13 have pled guilty, seven are sentenced, and five are awaiting sentences.
David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, remarks on the case.
“The investigation in Operation Deadlier Catch methodically identified and disrupted a major drug trafficking network in the Coastal Georgia area, and our office continues the work of bringing the 29 defendants to justice,” said Estes. “Kashif Collins is being held accountable as a leader of this group that for too long funneled illegal drugs and the associated violence into our community.”
The U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of Georgia has also initiated civil forfeiture proceedings in order to confiscate the firearms, along with $1.5 million in cash, and other assets such as homes, vehicles, and jewelry.
This case was investigated by the FBI, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the Chatham-Savannah Counter Narcotics Team (CNT), and the Savannah Police Department.
