Well-known Jamaican recording artist Flippa Mafia and his brother were among 15 people indicted by a state grand jury in New Jersey yesterday, on charges of running an international drug ring.
Prosecutors have stated that the ring used the postal service and other delivery systems to ship cocaine from California to New Jersey.
Thirty-five year-old Flippa Mafia, whose given name is Andrew Davis, and his brother, 23-year-old Kemar Davis, of Hollywood, California, face charges of leading a drug trafficking network, a first-degree crime that carries a sentence of 25 years to life in state prison.
The other 13 defendants face charges including conspiracy to distribute cocaine and money laundering.
Authorities in the case said the investigation, dubbed "Operation Next Day Air," began in March 2011 and uncovered that Flippa Mafia and his brother were leading the large scale operation from various locations in Jamaica and New Jersey.
The scheme came to light after detectives in Camden and the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office intercepted a shipment.
Authorities said more than 26 kilograms of cocaine, worth US$780,000, two handguns and US$600,000 cash were seized as part of the operation.
The state Attorney General's Office will prosecute those indicted.
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