JURY FINDS THOMAS GUILTY OF MONEY LAUNDERING, DRUG CHARGES

State Attorney Melissa Nelson announces that a Duval County jury found Michael Thomas II guilty of Money Laundering; Conspiracy to Traffic in Controlled Substances; Possession of Place for Trafficking in Manufacturing a Controlled Substance; Trafficking in Methamphetamine; Trafficking in Morphine, Hydromorphone, Opium, Heroin or their Derivatives; Trafficking in Oxycodone or its Derivatives; Trafficking in Hydrocodone or its Derivatives; Possession with Intent to Sell Cannabis; and Possession of Controlled Substance Paraphernalia. With the verdict, Thomas faces up to 145 years in Florida State Prison. The Honorable Mark Borello will sentence Thomas at a later date.

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office received an anonymous tip in 2024 that Thomas, the owner of a Westside business called New Jax City Smoke Shop, was selling narcotics out of his store. On July 21, 2025, officers executed a search warrant and found narcotics in large quantities, drug paraphernalia, and cash. An employee of the store was arrested at this time and, post-Miranda, advised officers that he worked for Thomas. A comprehensive investigation including financial records and text messages revealed that Thomas spearheaded a narcotics operation that involved both traditional drug trafficking and directing of individuals to obtain oxycodone and hydrocodone pills at pain clinics, which would in turn be surreptitiously sold at the smoke shop. 

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by Assistant State Attorneys Joseph Licandro and Raquel Stokes.