They dubbed themselves online as the 'rickandmortyshop' and shipped stuffed animals across the country, but federal investigators allege the suspects behind the darknet business were shipping toys filled with methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. On Thursday, Jerrell Eugene Anderson, a 34-year-old from Santa Clarita and the alleged leader of the ring, was sentenced to 96 months in federal prison for the scheme, the U.S. Attorney's office announced.
On the darknet, the ring advertised its illicit business with monikers such as 'Drugpharmacist' and 'rickandmortyshop,' in reference to the popular adult cartoon, according to prosecutors. The group used stash houses in the San Fernando Valley to deliver the drugs hidden in stuffed animals. The scheme ran from at least July 2018 until March 2019. In August 2018, prosecutors allege, one of those packages reached a customer in Knoxville, Tenn., who died after using the heroin.