The Broward man responsible for trying to sneak in the third-largest stash of pot ever at Miami International Airport, worth an estimated $4.3 million, will be spending the next decade behind bars.
Ryan Gayle, 32, was sentenced Friday in Miami to 121 months in federal prison and five years supervised release for his role in the massive 2006 seizure, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Approximately 3,540 pounds of marijuana were seized at MIA by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers on Nov. 30, 2006, in cargo crates labelled as pepper and seasoning from Kingston, Jamaica.
ICE agents determined Gayle was the intended recipient of the weed, and after they observed Gayle attempt to import more shipments in 2007, arrested him in August 2008.
Gayle was found guilty of conspiracy to import marijuana into the U.S. The marijuana, all 1.75 tons of it, was presumably destroyed, to the dismay of potheads throughout South Florida.
