The Tribune

By INSIGHT TEAM

THE alleged head of a US drug trafficking organisation accused of importing cocaine through The Bahamas with the assistance of Jonathan ‘Player’ Gardiner was living a life of luxury 30 miles outside Atlanta, Georgia, until his arrest on suspected drug trafficking charges two years ago.

Charles Dunn, also known as ‘Silk,’ is said to be the leader of the Georgia Drug Trafficking Organisation (DTO) named only as a co-conspirator, ‘CC-1’, in a May 15 affidavit by a US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Special Agent, which implicates a high-ranking politician, known only as ‘Politician-1’, discussing a $30m narcotics shipment inside the Bahamas Parliament Building.

Dunn’s alleged drug ring was referred to in court documents filed in the case of Bahamian Gardiner,  who was arrested on May 12 after being rescued from a crashed plane off the coast of Florida by the US military. Gardiner, 58, was alleged to be carrying a bag containing $30,000 in Bahamian currency that was labelled with the name of a Bahamian politician, ‘Politician-1’. The identity was redacted by US authorities.

Since his arrest, details continue to emerge about those allegedly involved with a massive DEA trafficking investigation centring on The Bahamas and the US. Court documents indicate the DEA was using undercover confidential sources (CSs) on Bahamian soil, without the knowledge of the Bahamian government, police or defence force, for at least three years.

On social media, Dunn, 57, has endorsements for books he has written from rapper Master P and Emmy-nominated actor Anthony Anderson, best known for Black-ish and Law & Order.

But prosecutors say that lifestyle is a front and that drug money paid for his $1.4m, eight-bedroom home with a pool in Fayetteville, Georgia.

Dunn is now facing charges in a Georgia court related to drug trafficking and planning an attack on a rival drug gang, allegations he denies. The offences carry a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. A woman believed to be Dunn’s wife, Leticia Evans Dunn, is also implicated.

In another twist, one of the other key figures in the alleged plot was another co-conspirator, ‘CC-2’, linked to Gardiner, who we can reveal as Ernest Mordeau Deas, aka ‘Shorty’, whose sentence for cocaine trafficking offences was commuted by former US President Barack Obama. Court records show Deas was subsequently placed on supervised release before his release from prison. Prosecutors now allege he returned to drug trafficking.

Court documents say Deas and Gardiner were incarcerated at the same federal prison in Florida during 2007-08, while both were serving sentences related to drug trafficking and money laundering offences.

The Atlanta, Georgia, filings describe a drug ring that allegedly trafficked “massive” quantities of cocaine — as much as 100 kilograms at a time — across multiple states.

But it is Dunn’s alleged public image as a reformed offender that is among the most striking aspects of the case.

Dunn has portrayed himself as a reformed ex-con. He was jailed for 30 years in Ohio, his home state, in 1992 at the age of 23 for running a drug trafficking operation.

A newspaper article reposted by Dunn on Instagram even asked whether his lengthy prison sentence made him America’s equivalent of Nelson Mandela, the South African anti-apartheid leader who spent 27 years in prison before becoming President.

According to Dunn, upon his release after serving 24 years he went straight and became a motivational speaker who appeared on numerous local television programmes, where he was billed as a life coach who had gone from “prisoner to changemaker”. In an interview with the online programme Build Series, Dunn said helping others learn to read and write in prison changed his outlook on life.

He said: “I realised you got to stop doing what you were taught to do to discover what you were born to do.”

Since then Dunn has given numerous lectures, including to youth groups, and published a motivational memoir titled I Will Not Be Denied: Mastering The Changes.

In an Instagram video, he showcases his lavish home and tells viewers: “After all the pain I went through, 25 years of suffering … I wake up living like this because the God I serve is saying he gives you double for your trouble.

“People got to go to resorts to see this. I see this every day. Have an attitude of gratitude. Go through your suffering with grace and you’ll be blessed to wake up like this for the rest of your life too.”

Dunn’s follow-up book, the four-volume Sandpaper to Silk series, has been endorsed by rapper Master P, who promoted it in a video posted on Dunn’s Instagram account. Anthony Anderson also backed the book, saying in a promotional clip: “Hey everybody, go get From Sandpaper to Silk, it’s on its way to being a bestseller.”

But prosecutors say the transformation is an illusion and that Dunn “has not turned his life around”.

During a July 2023 bail hearing in Georgia, prosecutors argued that he was “still doing the same thing that he’s been doing, which is drug trafficking”.

The prosecution added: “We do believe that the defendant is a sophisticated and prolific drug trafficker operating in Georgia. That is how he funds his lifestyle.”

The judge denied him bail and said that Dunn’s earlier prison sentence, of which he served more than 20 years, “did not deter you in the least”.

Magistrate Judge Christopher Bly said: “Within a year or so of finishing the supervised release, best I can tell if I’m doing the math right, within a year or so of finishing supervised release you’re charged in Fulton County and then within another two years you’re charged in the current case.”

According to the indictment against Dunn, when investigators raided his home they found evidence of a lifestyle far beyond that of a motivational speaker.

Items seized in the 2023 raid included a Lamborghini valued at about $250,000, a Cadillac Escalade worth approximately $125,000 and a 2019 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT valued at around $140,000.

Investigators also seized jewellery including a diamond-encrusted Rolex Datejust 41 containing 25 carats of diamonds, valued at approximately $29,000; a Rolex Datejust 36mm stainless steel watch valued at about $15,000; a gold Versace military-style dog tag; a gold diamond Cuban bracelet; a 10k yellow gold Gucci link diamond bracelet worth about $3,900; a 14k yellow gold diamond ring; and a 19k two-tone diamond ring.

Among the items recovered, prosecutors say, were five pounds of marijuana, half a kilogramme of cocaine, heroin, THC gummies, fentanyl, methamphetamine, 14 mobile phones and other electronic devices.

A handwritten note found in Dunn’s main bedroom, dated June 27, 2023, stated: “I have $10 million.” It is not known who wrote the note.

During the raid, investigators also seized four bank accounts containing a combined $653,000.

Authorities say they recovered approximately $120,000 in cash from Dunn’s property and another $270,000 from the property of one of his associates.

Court documents also state that investigators recovered a Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0 .45 calibre pistol.

Dunn and Deas both deny the charges and are awaiting trial. Lawyers for Dunn did not return calls.