30-Year Sentence for Man With 700+ Grams of Cocaine

Posted on July 27, 2026July 27, 2026 by Admin SA

A man who picked up a package containing more than 700 grams of cocaine while under surveillance was sentenced to 30 years in prison Friday after being found guilty of Trafficking in Cocaine (More than 400 Grams), State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Naiym Muhammad, 33, of Panama City, was also found guilty of Tampering with Evidence Friday. Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay sentenced the defendant to 30 years in prison, with the first 15 years being minimum-mandatory.

Prosecutor Jada Watkins called 5 witnesses – 3 Bay County Sheriff’s Office investigators, a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives agent, and a Florida Department of Law Enforcement analyst – to prove her case.

“This was a large amount of cocaine and the collaboration between the different agencies involved not only stopped these drugs from making it to the street, it held the defendant accountable,” Watkins said. “The US Postal Inspection Service did a great job by identifying the package as suspicious and notifying law enforcement.”

The evidence showed that in early February 2023, the US Postal Inspection Service notified the Bay County Sheriff’s Office that it had flagged a suspicious package sent from Brownsville, Texas, to an address on E. 7^th Plaza here. Their investigation showed the sender of the package was using a fictitious name and was also using a fictitious name for the recipient at the Panama City address.

As part of an undercover operation the package was delivered to the address while members of the BCSO Special Investigation Division maintained surveillance on the residence. Shortly after the package was delivered Feb. 9, 2023, a man later identified as the defendant pulled into the driveway. He approached the front porch, looked in both directions, picked up the package and returned to his car.

He drove away and investigators followed as they saw him run a stop sign and make an illegal U-turn on 11^th Street. They initiated a traffic stop and saw the defendant throw a phone out of his window before pulling over.

A drug-detecting K-9 alerted for the presence of drugs in the vehicle and investigators saw the package. When they opened it they found the cocaine in vacuum-sealed packaging.

Basford thanked the U.S. Postal Service, BCSO, and all involved for their work that kept the drugs from being sold and led to a successful outcome.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

Man Facing Meth Trafficking Trial Enters Plea, Receives 15-year Sentence

Posted on July 23, 2026July 23, 2026 by Admin SA

A Panama City man set to go to trial Thursday for Trafficking in Methamphetamine (more than 28) grams instead entered an open plea Wednesday and was sentenced to 15 years in prison, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Lajarvis Santez Allen, 40, of Panama City, entered an open plea to the charge, meaning Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay would decide the sentence without an arranged agreement. The charge carries a minimum-mandatory 7 years in prison and up to 30 years.

After hearing from Prosecutor Zachary VanDyke, the defendant, and family members of the defendant, Gay handed down a sentence of 15 years.

“The State would say this isn’t the kind of person we want out on the streets of Florida, and that you sentence him to at least 15 years in the Department of Corrections,” VanDyke said.

VanDyke was prepared to call witnesses and present evidence that Panama City Beach Police Department detectives developed information the defendant was delivering a large amount of methamphetamine to a location on the beach on Feb. 15, 2024.

The defendant was under surveillance and was detained after pulling into a driveway in the area where the transaction was supposed to occur. Detectives said the defendant was moving “furtively” and appeared to be concealing an item in his pants while still in the car.

A drug-detecting K-9 alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle, which was searched without success. But the defendant was found to have about 2 ounces of methamphetamine hidden in his boxer shorts.

Basford thanked the Panama City Beach Police Department for its pre-emptive work that kept the methamphetamine from reaching the streets.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

Man Found Guilty of Trafficking Fentanyl, Sentenced to 30 years in Prison

Posted on July 16, 2026 by Admin SA

A jury needed only 13 minutes Thursday to find a man guilty of Trafficking in Fentanyl (more than 28 grams) after he drove from Fort Walton Beach to sell an ounce and a half of fentanyl to a Panama City Police Department confidential informant, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Mario Ardale Donaldson, 24, of Fort Walton Beach, was also found guilty of Unlawful use of a Two-Way Communications Device. Circuit Court Judge Dustin Stephenson ordered the 30-year sentence, which includes a minimum-mandatory 25 years and a $500,000 fine under Florida’s enhanced drug trafficking statutes.

Prosecutor Christopher Walters called two Panama City Police Department Corporals who testified Donaldson agreed to the sale through a confidential informant March 11, 2025. The defendant was known as a fentanyl dealer, and told police he was “fronted” the drugs before driving to Panama City. That means he had to pay back his dealer once he made the sale.

But when he got back to Panama City and went to the designated spot for the transaction, he instead was detained by Panama City police.

During questioning at the Panama City Police Department, it was learned the defendant was carrying a large bag of fentanyl in his groin area. He retrieved it for police and admitted his participation in the day’s activities.

“This is a large amount of fentanyl and the Panama City Police Department did an excellent job of reacting to information it developed and making an arrest before it could hit the streets,” Walters said. “Fentanyl is so potent and unpredictable, and it is a plague on the community.”

The testimony and evidence proved that a confidential information told police he knew someone selling large amounts of fentanyl. He called the defendant, with police monitoring, and set up the deal.

Basford thanked the Panama City Police Department for its quick action in the case.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.