Two St. Petersburg brothers surrendered to authorities Thursday afternoon for their connection to a large-scale cocaine trafficking ring in Pinellas County that stemmed out of Miami.
They are in custody at the St. Petersburg Police Department.
Officials said the Kenyate King and Michael King are well-known drug dealers in the local community, and in just one weekend, trafficked 17 kilos of cocaine worth more than $700,000 into the Tampa Bay area. Federal agents were able to make a drug bust after a lengthy investigation that included wiretapping phone calls and intercepting text messages.
According to court documents, the drugs were seized from two homes in Pinellas County. In a home on the 650 block of 72nd Ave North in Pinellas Park, agents seized 11 kilos of cocaine and more than $215,000 in cash. They seized six kilos of cocaine and more than $96,000 in cash from a second location on the 4800 block of 12th Ave. South in St. Petersburg.
The street value for one kilo of cocaine is 42,000.
Court documents also reveal that the brothers were federally indicted along with 10 other people also accused in taking part in this drug ring that stemmed out of Miami.
The King brothers could face up to a life sentence behind bars.
A law enforcement source adds that one Michael King financially sponsored the St. Pete Little Devils, a little league football team in St. Petersburg.
