Man gets four years in drug case

Staff Report

YOUNGSTOWN

A Pittsburgh man was sentenced to four years in prison Tuesday after his admission that he was part of a drug ring.

Robert Johnson, 30, was sentenced by Judge Maureen Sweeney in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court after pleading guilty to charges of conspiracy to fund drug trafficking and conspiracy to distribute cocaine.

Johnson was given credit for 29 days served in the county jail.

As part of the plea agreement, Johnson has to forfeit just over $6,000 and a car, said Assistant Prosecutor Martin Desmond.

Johnson chose not to address the court when he was sentenced.

Desmond said Johnson was accused of giving money to people so they could purchase drugs and bring them back to the Youngstown area.

Others who face charges in the same case are Jamie Hobdy, 30 and Lacy Tooks, 27, both of Pittsburgh; Terrence Wilkerson, 38 of the Bronx, N.Y.; and George Wilkins III, 41, of Struthers.

They are considered part of a group that was bringing in drugs between April and August 2013.

Wilkins had received a prison sentence of 13 months and four years for his role in the June 1996 slaying of Mahoning Valley organized crime figure Ernie Biondillo, 53, as he was driving to work on the East Side.

Hobdy and Tooks have already pleaded guilty for their roles in the operation.

Wilkerson and Wilkins each have trials set for Oct. 6.