Pikesville Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Importing Heroin

BALTIMORE—U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles, Jr., sentenced Suleiman Ahmed Zakaria, 27, of Pikesville, MD, to 10 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release for importing heroin into the United States from Ghana.

According to a news release from the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, the Feb. 2 sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge William Winter of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations; and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Baltimore Port Director Ricardo Scheller.

"According to trial testimony, on January 26, 2010, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Baltimore Washington International Airport inspected Zakaria as he entered the United States from London, England. The flight had originated in Accra, Ghana," the release states. "More than about six pounds of heroin hydrochloride was found concealed within the lining of Zakaria’s luggage."

Rosenstein commended ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection for their work in the investigation. He thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Peter Nothstein and Kwame Manley, who prosecuted the case.