New Orleans Woman Sentenced for Federal Controlled Substances Act Violations and Money Laundering

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – BRANDIE ROWE (“ROWE”), age 37, a resident of New Orleans, was sentenced on March 12, 2025, after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute, and possess with intent to distribute, a quantity of cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl, and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson.  ROWE was sentenced to thirty-six months imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and a $200 mandatory special assessment fee.

According to court documents, ROWE and other co-conspirators distributed multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin within the Eastern District of Louisiana.  Additionally, ROWE and the co-conspirators traveled between New Orleans, and other states, in order to transport U.S. Currency and narcotics on behalf of a Drug Trafficking Organization.

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

This investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration – New Orleans Field Division Office and was assisted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Border Patrol, the Gretna Major Crimes Task Force, the Kenner Police Department, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, the St. John’s Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the New Orleans Police Department.  The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Lynn E. Schiffman of the Narcotics Unit.