Kansas City man pleads guilty to role in meth ring linked to two murders: Prosecutors
A Kansas City man has pleaded guilty for his role in a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy that once spanned between St. Louis and Kansas City and was linked to two murders in 2018, federal prosecutors said Friday.
Gerald L. Ginnings, 42, entered the guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays in the Western District of Missouri, admitting to participating in a conspiracy to distribute drugs and launder money. Ginnings also admitted to two federal gun crimes.
Prosecutors say Ginnings was responsible for distributing at least five kilos of meth and used the money he earned for personal and living expenses. He admitted to being involved with the group from January through October of 2018.
As a whole, the drug ring was linked to the distribution of 520 kilograms and worth an estimated $4.1 million. It was also linked to the killings of James Hampton and 28-year-old Brittanie Broyles, identified by federal authorities as associates of the group.
According to court documents, Hampton was blamed by another member of the organization when several drove to St. Louis in search of a drug courier suspected of stealing $30,000 in meth. Authorities have said Hampton was taken to a residence near St. Louis, where he was tied to a chair and beaten with brass knuckles and kitchen pots.
Hampton’s charred skeletal remains were found a few days later in the trunk of a burned Dodge Challenger in rural Lafayette County. Days later, Broyles — who prosecutors say was kidnapped from St. Louis — was found shot to death in Kansas City in the 6800 block of St. John Avenue.
Authorities have alleged Broyles was killed because she witnessed Hampton’s murder.
Over the course of nearly four years, twenty-two criminal defendants, including Ginnings, have entered guilty pleas in the federal case.
Under federal law, Ginnings faces a minimum prison sentence of 15 years — and a maximum of life — without the possibility of parole.
