Additional Tangipahoa Parish Residents Sentenced in Jungle Life Mafia Street Gang Prosecution

Jerald Alexander, age 38 and a Tangipahoa Parish resident, was sentenced on May 4, 2023, to 87 months imprisonment, 5 years of supervised release, and a $400 mandatory special assessment fee by U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.  Alexander had previously previously pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute marijuana, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Star Robichaux, age 43 and a Tangipahoa Parish resident, was sentenced on April 25, 2023, to 22 months imprisonment, 5 years of supervised release, and a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.  Robichaux previously pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and 1 kilogram or more of heroin.

According to court documents, Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) agents began investigating the drug trafficking activities of the Jungle Life Mafia street gang in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana in 2019.  The investigation spanned two years.  Jerald Alexander served as the marijuana source of supply for multiple co-conspirators, including Michael Alexander, Sr., Atrell Anderson, and Terrell Haynes. DEA agents executed a search warrant at his residence which resulted in the seizure of 10 pounds of marijuana, $290,339 in U.S. currency, and a Palmetto Arms, Model PA-15, multi-caliber pistol.

Pursuant to a traffic stop, Robichaux was found to be in possession of four ounces of heroin mixed with fentanyl that she planned to deliver to co-conspirator Terrell Haynes.

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

This case was investigated by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, Hammond Police Department, Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Twenty-First Judicial District Attorney’s Office, Twenty-Second Judicial District Attorney’s Office, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Marshals Service. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney J. Benjamin Myers of the Narcotics Unit.