A California woman has pleaded guilty to a federal drug charge after transporting 24 kilograms of cocaine through the Philadelphia area, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced Tuesday.
Constance Arrington, 35, formerly of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. She was identified as part of an international cocaine trafficking operation by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Los Angeles Police Department.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Arrington made repeated short, round-trip flights from Los Angeles to Philadelphia and other cities, often traveling across the country within a single day. On March 15, 2024, DEA Philadelphia was notified that she was flying to Philadelphia and returning the same day.
During a joint surveillance operation with the Philadelphia Police Department, Arrington landed with no checked luggage, rented a car, and drove to an office complex in New Jersey. While en route, she briefly entered a grocery store, likely to evade surveillance, before continuing to the complex.
After exiting the complex with three large boxes, Arrington loaded them into her vehicle and drove back to Philadelphia across the Ben Franklin Bridge. Law enforcement stopped her shortly afterward and recovered 24 kilograms of cocaine inside the boxes.
Arrington is scheduled for sentencing on July 29. She faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
