Leader of Fort Myers drug-trafficking ring pleads guilty to conspiracy

A Fort Myers man has pleaded guilty to conspiracy as leader of a drug trafficking ring.

23-year-old Marvin Harris, Jr., aka “Mesh,” was accused of conspiring to distribute fentanyl, cocaine base and cocaine. He faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 5 years, and up to 40 years, in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, Harris led a drug-trafficking ring operating in neighborhoods off of Palm Beach Boulevard. He recruited dealers to work for him and provided them with housing, which served as their main distribution points.

On Aug. 14, 2020, Harris was jailed for contempt of court in connection with a homicide investigation. He continued to run his organization while behind bars, enlisting his girlfriend, co-defendant Destiny Molina, to supply his dealers with drugs and collect the revenue generated by the business. Recorded phone calls between Harris and Molina captured him teaching her how to mix fentanyl with adulterants to increase the profit potential of his product along with other instructions necessary to keep his illegal enterprise afloat.

On Oct. 15, 2020, the FBI searched Molina’s home and Harris’s main drug house located on New York Drive in Fort Myers. Inside Molina’s home, law enforcement recovered nearly $55,000 in cash, multiple pieces of expensive jewelry, more than 100 grams of fentanyl and cocaine, and a firearm. At the drug house, law enforcement found nearly $5,000 in cash, additional fentanyl and cocaine, and another firearm.

In connection with his guilty plea, Harris has agreed to forfeit his Mercedes-Benz automobile, $59,056 in seized cash, an 18k gold Datejust Rolex and multiple gold “Cuban link” chains, all of which were traced to the proceeds of his drug ring. Four other members of the conspiracy had previously pleaded guilty in connection with his case and are awaiting sentencing.