U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell has sentenced Edgar Vazquez (36, Fort Myers) to 11 years in federal prison for possessing with the intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine. The court also ordered Vazquez to forfeit a firearm and ammunition that were involved in the offense.
Vazquez had been found guilty by a jury on September 15, 2020.
According to evidence presented at trial, in September 2018, Vazquez was driving a vehicle on Colonial Boulevard in Fort Myers, when he was stopped by Lee County Sheriff’s Office deputies for committing a traffic infraction. After a trained drug canine unit alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle, law enforcement conducted a search of the vehicle and recovered approximately 500 grams of cocaine from inside the vehicle. A subsequent search warrant was executed at Vazquez’s residence, where approximately 700 grams of cocaine, cash, and a loaded gun were seized from his bedroom.
This case was investigated by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Simon R. Eth and David P. Sullivan.
