Henglie Zhou, a 31-year-old Chinese national, will spend the next five years in federal prison for possessing more than 100 kilograms of marijuana with the intent to distribute it. U.S. District Judge Jordan E. Pratt handed down the sentence following Zhou’s guilty plea on March 5, 2026. The sentencing was officially announced by United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe.
The federal case began on October 7, 2024, during an ongoing investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). A trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol pulled over a transit van for a traffic violation. Zhou was the driver and the only person inside the vehicle.
After a canine unit responded to the scene, the drug-sniffing dog alerted officers to the presence of narcotics inside the van.
A subsequent search of the vehicle’s cargo area uncovered 22 cardboard boxes. Inside those boxes, troopers found between 20 and 30 vacuum-sealed bags filled with marijuana. The total haul weighed approximately 597 pounds, which equals about 271 kilograms.
When questioned, Zhou told authorities that the van was a rental, but claimed he did not know who rented it or for how long. He denied knowing that the boxes were in the back of the van when he took control of the vehicle, and further denied knowing that there was marijuana inside them.
However, the joint investigation quickly challenged Zhou’s story. Records from the rental agency revealed that Zhou had actually rented the transit van himself on the very day of his arrest. Furthermore, documentation showed that Zhou had rented cargo vans in Jacksonville 11 separate times between March and September 2024, with each rental lasting just one or two days.
The fallout from the investigation extends beyond Zhou. In related federal court proceedings, eight other individuals have been charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana. The indicted individuals are Jack Anntsai Chang, Kenneth Chu, Hang Sin, Yonquan Yu, Wai Lok Hui, Shaoyun Ye, Fan Liu, and Key’on Garmon.
Under U.S. law, an indictment is merely a formal accusation that a defendant has violated federal criminal law. Every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, they are proven guilty in a court of law.
The case was investigated by the DEA and the Florida Highway Patrol. Assistant United States Attorney Elisibeth Adams handled the prosecution.
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