A former Atlantic City basketball star who admitted to leading a deadly heroin-trafficking ring was sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison Monday.
Khalif Toombs, 31, of Egg Harbor Township, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than one kilogram of heroin.
He was sentenced to 135 months in prison.
Toombs was one of 22 people charged in June 2019.
The investigation tracked heroin with multiple stamps, which were tied to 48 deaths within less than 18 months, from Jan. 1, 2017 to June 21, 2019.
There were also 84 nonfatal overdoses.
Thirteen others have pleaded guilty in the conspiracy: Wilbert Toombs, Quadir Stanley, Dean Johnson, Khalif Davis, Joseph Aversa, Thomas Randall, Mayda Hernandez, Sarah Taliaferro, James Blackwell, Philip Surace, Nasir Brown, Karon Carey and David Ramirez.
Eight other defendants have been indicted and their cases are pending.
Wiretaps found that Toombs and his associates coordinated their efforts using phone calls, text messages and social media.
Toombs’ supplier was in Paterson, where associates from Atlantic City would make frequent trips to replenish the supply.
Toombs was a point guard for the South Carolina State Bull Dogs, where he was a starter for four years. He also has coached in Atlantic City working with youth.
He admitted in court to conspiring with others to traffic between three and 10 kilograms of heroin during the period of the investigation and to being a manager and supervisor of the drug trafficking conspiracy, which operated throughout Atlantic County.
The investigation tracked multiple stamps, including “AK-47,” “Apple,” “Fortnite,” “Rolex,” “Frank Lucas,” “Bentley,” “Pandora,” and “9 ½.”
When Toombs completes his sentence, he will be subject to five years of supervised release.
