13 accused in federal drug conspiracy indictment

HANNIBAL, Mo. (AP) - Thirteen people from Missouri and Illinois face federal charges for allegedly conspiring to distribute cocaine and other drugs in Hannibal and elsewhere in northeast Missouri.

The U.S. Attorney's office in St. Louis announced the arrests Thursday, a day after raids were conducted in Hannibal and the St. Louis area. Suspects include six people from Hannibal, four from St. Louis, and one each from Mexico, Missouri, Quincy, Illinois, and Swansea, Illinois.

A federal indictment accuses two men of obtaining cocaine from a source in Austin, Texas, and using couriers, often women, to transport the drug to Hannibal, where it was converted into crack cocaine for distribution.

The suspects also are accused of distributing heroin, and five are accused of laundering proceeds of the conspiracy.