The U.S. Marshals Service is searching for a man convicted four years ago in a federal drug trafficking case in Baltimore who has since skipped out on his probation.
Robert Raynard Saunders, 33, served two years in prison as part of a plea deal and was out on supervised release.
According to federal court records, beginning in 2017, Saunders and his co-defendants sold crack cocaine and marijuana from an open-air drug shop located in Baltimore’s public housing community, Latrobe Homes. Investigators described Saunders as a street-level seller.
Saunders eventually sold marijuana to an undercover informant alongside a co-defendant, who sold the informant crack cocaine. Investigators also used the seized drugs, paraphernalia, recorded jail calls and witness testimony to build a case, according to federal court documents.
Saunders and eight co-defendants were indicted in connection with the case in January 2019. Saunders accepted a deal in 2021 with prosecutors to plead guilty to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, aiding and abetting. In addition to two years of imprisonment, a judge ordered that he serve three years of probation after his release.
Saunders is not wanted for violating the terms of his probation.
Saunders’ criminal history dates back nearly 15 years and includes convictions for misdemeanor drug possession, felony drug distribution, and two gun possession-related violations, according to court records.
One gun-related charge in 2018 resulted in a five-year prison sentence without the possibility of parole, according to online court records. That same year, Saunders was part of a federal probe into a drug trafficking operation in Baltimore.
“The Department of Justice has made extraordinary efforts over the last decades or so to combat the peddling of drugs into our communities. A particular concern is always crack cocaine, so as the U.S. Marshals Service is involved in the apprehension of fugitives, we want to do everything we can to support the Department of Justice in this initiative,” said Al Maresca, senior inspector with the Marshals Service.
Investigators warn that Saunders is known to have violent tendencies.
Those with information regarding his whereabouts are asked to contact the Marshals Service at 202-819-5058.
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