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BEAUMONT, Texas – A 41-year-old Ft. Lauderdale, Florida woman has been sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking charges in the Eastern District of Texas announced U.S. Attorney Stephen J. Cox on Wednesday.

 Shenita Denise Peterson pleaded guilty on Jan. 28, 2020, to possession with intent to distribute cocaine and was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Michael Truncale.

According to information provided in court, on Aug. 23, 2019, Peterson was stopped by Beaumont Police for a traffic violation on Interstate Highway 10 in Beaumont, Texas.  A search of the vehicle revealed approximately 45 individual kilograms of cocaine, which were concealed in the door panels of the vehicle.  Peterson was indicted by a federal grand jury on Sep. 4, 2019 and charged with drug trafficking violations.

This case was investigated by the Beaumont Police Department and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert L. Rawls.