Rayful Edmond III, the infamous drug kingpin who dominated Washington, D.C.’s crack cocaine trade in the 1980s, has been transferred to a halfway house ahead of his expected release in 2025, federal officials confirmed.
Edmond, now 59, was moved to a “community confinement” facility managed by the Nashville Residential Reentry Management Office. Community confinement can include home confinement or a halfway house, but the specific location has not been disclosed.
Edmond’s rise to infamy began in the mid-1980s when he controlled approximately 60% of D.C.’s crack cocaine market, moving nearly 400 pounds of the drug into the city each week. His operation fueled a devastating epidemic, leading to widespread addiction and a spike in homicides, which earned D.C. the grim title of “murder capital.”
In 1989, Edmond was sentenced to life without parole for his drug crimes. Even behind bars in Pennsylvania, he continued to orchestrate drug deals until his activities were halted in 1994. Edmond then turned informant, providing information that led to the conviction of over 100 drug dealers and solving 20 unsolved homicides.
His substantial cooperation with authorities resulted in a federal judge reducing his life sentence to 20 years in 2021. This sentence was served consecutively with a 30-year sentence for his continued drug offenses while imprisoned.
A recent video of Edmond declaring, “I’m back, better than ever,” has brought renewed public attention to his case. Officials confirm that after serving 35 years, Edmond could be fully released by November 2025.
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