PHILADELPHIA, PA — A Philadelphia man who prosecutors say stalked and carjacked a FedEx truck at gunpoint in broad daylight, believing it carried a lucrative shipment of cocaine, was sentenced Tuesday to 22 years in federal prison in a case that exposed a brazen plot stretching from California to North Broad Street.
U.S. Attorney David Metcalf said Ronald Byrd, 37, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gail A. Weilheimer to 22 years behind bars, followed by 10 years of supervised release, for his role in the armed carjacking of a FedEx Express truck in August 2022 and related drug and firearm offenses.
Byrd and co-defendant Saikeen Dixon, 33, were charged by superseding indictment in September 2023. Both men were convicted at trial in June of carjacking and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. Byrd was also convicted of attempting to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and later pleaded guilty to an additional firearms charge. Dixon was sentenced last month to more than 12 years in prison.
According to court filings and trial testimony, the scheme centered on a suspicious package shipped on August 9, 2022, from “Karen Boothe” of “Caliber Consulting LLC” in Buena Park, California, to “Universal Medical Inc.” at 3401 North Broad Street, Suite 101 — an address associated with Temple Hospital.
The following morning, a FedEx driver identified in court as J.H. was delivering to Temple Hospital when he began receiving calls and text messages from a former FedEx employee, P.A., pressing him to hand over the package. When J.H. refused, P.A. allegedly escalated the effort, offering $5,000 in cash. J.H. again refused and contacted supervisors.
Two supervisors arrived, secured the package in a separate FedEx van, and redirected J.H. to continue deliveries nearby. But as the trucks left the area, a black Jeep Cherokee began following the FedEx vehicle, investigators said.
At a red light near the FedEx distribution center in Southwest Philadelphia, Dixon pulled the Jeep in front of the truck. Byrd exited the passenger side, pointed a black semi-automatic pistol at J.H., and approached the driver’s door. The driver fled the truck and ran toward the FedEx facility as Byrd climbed inside and drove off.
Prosecutors said Byrd drove the truck across the Grays Ferry Bridge before abandoning it when he was unable to access the cargo area. The pair fled in the Jeep, leaving the sought-after package behind.
A trained narcotics K9 later alerted to the package, and a search warrant revealed nine individually wrapped bricks of cocaine, each weighing about one kilogram. Laboratory testing confirmed approximately 9.005 kilograms of cocaine, with an estimated street value of $500,000.
“The defendant was willing to get his shipment of cocaine by any means necessary, stalking and carjacking a FedEx truck at gunpoint on a busy Philly street,” Metcalf said, noting that Byrd was on supervised release for a prior federal drug conviction at the time. “This sentence both holds him accountable and makes the city safer.”
Wayne A. Jacobs, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia office, said the violent conduct placed residents at risk and credited joint work by federal, state, and local agencies for securing the convictions.
The case was investigated by the FBI Philadelphia Violent Crimes Task Force and the Philadelphia Police Department, with assistance from the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office Bureau of Narcotics Investigation. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Bowerman.
For the latest news on everything happening in Chester County and the surrounding area, be sure to follow MyChesCo on Google News and MSN.