4 indicted in drug trafficking scheme

North Olmsted house part of probe

Four men were indicted on charges connected to a drug trafficking scheme, authorities said.

Four Cleveland men were indicted Feb. 13 on charges connected to an interstate drug trafficking scheme netting millions of dollars in sales, authorities said.

The indictment was filed in the eastern division of U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.

It names as defendants: Amer Jabir, who goes by O and Omar; his brother Ahmad Jabir, who goes by Bigs or Stank; their cousin Aymen Abdelrahim, who goes by Heime; and Gerald Knox, who goes by Josh or Cricket.

According to the indictment, Amer Jabir is facing single counts of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and oxycodone and possession with intent to distribute marijuana.

Ahmad Jabir is facing charges of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and oxycodone, three counts of distributing oxycodone, four counts of distributing marijuana, a single count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and three counts of unlawful use of a communication facility.

Abdelrahim is facing charges of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and oxycodone, distributing oxycodone, three counts of distributing marijuana, a single count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and five counts of unlawful use of a communication facility.

Knox is facing charges of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and oxycodone, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, felon possessing a firearm and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.

The initial complaint filed with the court Jan. 22, indicated the Jabir brothers were involved in a scheme to purchase marijuana from illicit growers in Humboldt County, Calif., and transport it across the country for distribution in Chicago and Cleveland.

A confidential informant told the FBI the scheme involved the 600 pounds of marijuana which was trafficked from California every two weeks in customized trap doors in vehicles transported in the back of car haulers.

Through confidential informants, surveillance, wiretaps and controlled purchases of marijuana and oxycodone, investigators connected Abdelrahim to the scheme as he sold some of the drugs from a Cleveland gasoline station he worked at, the complaint said.

The complaint outlines an operation that supplied hundreds of pounds of marijuana and pills to drug dealers across greater Cleveland, including North Olmsted.

Knox’s role in the enterprise was not apparent from court documents.

The indictment also calls for the forfeiture of four guns and $18,250 found in Knox’s Cleveland apartment; $23,339 and ammunition found in the apartment of Ahmad Jabir in Cleveland; $1,110,829, a firearm and a 2015 Range Rover found at a North Olmsted house belonging to the Jabir brothers; $986,730, a $5,000 casino chip, a pistol and jewelry found in Amer Jabir’s apartment in Chicago; and $19,043 found in Abdelrahim’s Cleveland apartment.

A news release issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office said the crimes were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, North Olmsted Police Department, Westlake Police Department, Ohio State Highway Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Westshore Enforcement Bureau.

Assistant U.S. attorneys Justin Seabury Gould and Robert F. Corts will handle the cases, the release stated.