Nine people were indicted in federal court for their roles in a conspiracy to launder more than $2 million in drug profits stemming from the shipment approximately one ton of marijuana from California to warehouses in Wickliffe, Willoughby and Euclid.

Indicted are: Aaron L. Eisenberg, 39, of California and formerly of Lake County; Jack Morgan, 53, of California; Jacob Lesiak, 40, of Chardon, Margaret Garcia, 40, of Chardon; Gary Baldwin, 43, of Huntsburg; Trevor Marlyne, 32, of Cleveland Heights; Robert Ross, 47, of Florida; Brian Teachout, 38, of Mentor, and Richard Warren, 43, of Willoughby. All nine are charged with engaging in a money laundering conspiracy, while Eisenberg, Morgan, Jacob Lesiak, Garcia, Baldwin, Warren and Teachout are charged with possession with intent to distribute marijuana.

Two more people – Corrie Lesiak, 40, of Chardon, and Cynthia Hounshell, 61, of Concord – are indicted on related money laundering charges.

Teachout is also charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. Teachout had a Bushmaster AR-15, Smith & Wesson M & P 15-22, an AK-47, Glock model 17 pistol, SCCY 9 mm pistol, Walther P22 .22 caliber pistol, Kimber .45-caliber pistol, Magnum Desert Eagle .50-caliber pistol and ammunition on July 29, 2015, despite a previous conviction for marijuana trafficking, according to the indictment.

According to the seven-count indictment:

Eisenberg, Morgan and others used a commercial carrier called Specialized Transportation Inc. (STI) to send pallets filled with packages of marijuana from California to warehouses on Anderson Drive in Wickliffe, Airport Parkway in Willoughby and Tungsten Road in Euclid. This began in 2014

Jacob Lesiak, Garcia, Baldwin, Warren and others received the packages of marijuana. Jacob Lesiak, Teachout, Warren, Marlyne and Ross then distributed the marijuana throughout Northeast Ohio.

Jacob Lesiak, Teachout, Warren, Marlyne, Ross and others then pooled their proceeds and sent the money back to Eisenberg and Morgan in California on pallets via STI. They labelled the pallets as computer parts and/or with names of companies that did not exist in an effort to conceal the identity of the sender.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation.  In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than maximum. 

This cases is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron P. Howell following an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations, Drug Enforcement Administration, Lake County Narcotics and Geauga County Narcotics.

An indictment is only a charge. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.