A Buffalo man with a prior federal drug conviction was arrested after investigators intercepted a package containing about two kilograms of suspected cocaine, federal prosecutors said.
David Garrett, 56, is charged by criminal complaint with attempting to possess cocaine with intent to distribute. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York.
Federal officials said the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Drug Enforcement Administration began investigating narcotics shipments to the Buffalo area in August.
Postal inspectors were alerted Sept. 6 to a parcel sent from Puerto Rico to Garrett. Investigators searched the package Sept. 9 and reported finding the suspected cocaine concealed in a white box decorated with pink flowers.
Authorities replaced the contents with sham material and conducted a controlled delivery Sept. 11 to a Sycamore Street home, prosecutors said. Garrett allegedly left the residence carrying the parcel and was arrested after a traffic stop.
Garrett previously received a sentence of time served and six years of supervised release following a federal conviction for conspiracy to distribute cocaine, according to the complaint.
U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder Jr. ordered Garrett detained after his initial appearance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt I. Kass is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is an accusation. Garrett is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
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