Maryland Drug Bust Nets 42 Kilograms of Cocaine, Dozen Arrests

Wicomico County Sheriff Mike Lewis had a blunt message for the drug network his office spent 15 months dismantling: "Imagine how much poison was removed from our streets."

Standing alongside Gov. Wes Moore in Salisbury on Tuesday, Lewis announced the results of a multi-agency operation that seized 42.61 kilograms (more than 93 pounds) of cocaine, produced more than a dozen arrests, and disrupted a trafficking organization with confirmed ties to a Mexican drug cartel. The network moved narcotics across Maryland's Eastern Shore and into Virginia and Delaware.

The investigation began in late 2024 after authorities received information about Desmond Roberts Jr.'s alleged trafficking activities. It relied on undercover buys, drone surveillance, tracking devices, and a Title III wiretap that put investigators on multiple telephone lines around the clock. "We were up on a very, very complex wiretap investigation," Lewis said.

Beyond cocaine, the operation recovered crack, heroin, MDMA, psilocybin mushrooms, fentanyl pills and ecstasy, along with 11 firearms and more than $23,000 in cash. Numerous search warrants targeted residences and vehicles tied to the network. The Worcester County Sheriff's Office Criminal Enforcement Team and Wicomico County's Joint Community Action Team led the probe with federal partners.

The Eastern Shore geography of the bust should not minimize its local relevance for Prince George's County. Officials said the trafficking organization distributed drugs to Baltimore and surrounding regions, a distribution footprint that feeds downstream markets throughout central Maryland and the Washington metro area. Intelligence gathered through the wiretaps, including supplier identities, money-movement patterns and distribution contacts, may now support follow-up investigations or prosecutions across counties that received product from the disrupted network.

That potential reach matters in a county where overdoses are a daily reality. Prince George's County recorded 113 overdose deaths between March 2025 and February 2026, according to a new state data dashboard released Tuesday, ranking it third statewide behind Baltimore City's 561 deaths and Baltimore County's 146. County health officials have flagged a persistent and deadly trend: cocaine, heroin and illicit pills circulating locally are increasingly laced with fentanyl, compounding the lethality of any wholesale supply that reaches street level.

Prosecutors said additional charges and arrests are expected as evidence from the wiretaps and executed warrants continues to be processed.

Residents can obtain a free naloxone kit and training through Prince George's County health services by calling (301) 883-7828. Naloxone reverses opioid overdoses and is available without a prescription at all Maryland pharmacies. Those seeking substance use treatment can call Maryland's 211 helpline for referrals, or reach the county's Go Slow fentanyl harm-reduction program through the Prince George's County Health Department's Behavioral Health Services page at princegeorgescountymd.gov.