Pilot and Passenger of Plane That Crashed in Yoakum County Plead Guilty to Drug Charges

Two people that crashed an airplane at an area airport have pleaded guilty to drug charges.

Sacramento, California resident Gregory Thomas, the 55-year-old pilot of the airplane, and 66-year-old Dorothea Cangelosi of Waller, Texas, each pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 kilograms or more of marijuana and aiding and abetting.

On April 30th, 2013, deputies with the Yoakum County Sheriff’s Department responded to a plane crash at the Yoakum County Airport in Plains, Texas.

The deputies found a Beechcraft Bonanza A36 plane that had belly landed in a field around 50 yards past the end of the runway.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, on the day before the crash, Cangelosi flew on a commercial airline from Houston to Sacramento, California, where she met up with Thomas, a charter pilot. Thomas was paid about $5,000 cash to fly her from Sacramento back to Houston.

They left Sacramento during the early morning hours on April 30th, and landed in Plains to refuel. After refueling, the plane encountered engine problems when attempting to take off and crashed.

Yoakum County Sheriff’s Deputies received a 911 call from a person who reported seeing a woman with bags by a road that runs parallel to the airport. Later, deputies found four large duffel bags that were hidden next to a bush more than 100 yards from the crash site.

Deputies discovered 151 individual packages of marijuana with a total weight of 160 pounds.

They both admitted that they had intended to distribute the marijuana to other individuals in Houston.

Both Thomas and Cangelosi face a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $1 million fine. They remain on bond pending sentencing.

Source:  http://kfyo.com

 Here is the official press release from the Department of Justice:

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United States Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña
Northern District of Texas

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                                    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                  MEDIA INQUIRIES:  KATHY COLVIN
                                                                                                                                                                            214.659.8600
                                   FRIDAY, AUGUST 2, 2013

                                   http://www.justice.gov/usao/txn/

Pilot and Passenger of Plane That Crashed at Yoakum County Airport
After Refueling Plead Guilty to Drug Charges

Approximately 160 Pounds of Marijuana on Board Plane
That Belly Landed at Airport in Plains, Texas

LUBBOCK, Texas — A pilot and his passenger, who belly landed their Beechcraft plane at the Yoakum County Airport on April 30, 2013, appeared this morning before U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings and pleaded guilty to a felony drug charge.  Pilot Gregory Thomas, 50, of Sacramento, California, and his passenger, Dorothea Cangelosi, 66, of Waller, Texas, each pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 kilograms or more of marijuana and aiding and abetting.  They each face a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $1 million fine, and will remain on bond pending sentencing.  Judge Cummings ordered a presentence investigation report with a sentencing date to be set after the completion of that report.   Today’s announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.

According to plea documents filed in the case, on April 30, 2013, deputies with the Yoakum County Sheriff’s Department (YCSD) responded to a plane crash at the Yoakum County Airport, in Plains, Texas.  When they arrived, they observed a Beechcraft Bonanza A36 plane that had belly landed in a field approximately 50 yards past the end of the runway.  

On April 29, 2013, the day before the crash, Cangelosi flew a commercial airline from Houston, Texas, to Sacramento, California, where she met up with Thomas, a charter pilot, who was paid approximately $5,000 cash to fly her from Sacramento back to Houston.  They left Sacramento during the early morning hours of April 30, 2013, and in route to Houston, landed in Plains to refuel.  After fueling, the plane encountered engine problems when attempting to take off and crashed.

The YCSD received a 911 call from an individual who reported seeing a female with bags by a road that runs parallel to the airport.  Later, deputies located four large canvas duffel bags that were hidden next to a bush more than 100 yards from the crash site.  A YCSD drug-detector dog alerted on the bags for the presence of drugs and deputies discovered 151 individual packages of marijuana, with a total weight of 72.8 kilograms or 160 pounds.  The drug-detector dog also alerted to the presence of drugs inside the plane.  

Thomas admits that after the plane crashed, he and Cangelosi retrieved the duffel bags from the plane’s passenger compartment and hid them more than 100 yards away, across two barbed-wire fences and a road, from the plane.  Cangelosi admitted that Thomas carried most of the bags and threw some of them over the fence.  They both admitted that they had intended to distribute the marijuana to other individuals in Houston.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Aviation Administration, the YCSD and the Texas Department of Public Safety.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Cunningham prosecuted.

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