NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. – A crime and safety expert weighed in on the recent arrest of a 68-year-old suspected member of “The Miami Boys” drug organization.
Nathaniel James was arrested on drug charges on April 1. He was wanted on an out-of-county warrant from Duval County.
According to federal law enforcement agents, James is a member of the now-disbanded “Miami Boys” drug organization – a group of drug suppliers and dealers from Miami known back in the 80s and 90s as “The Untouchables.”
“The Miami Boys” name was synonymous with large-scale drug transactions. Those were the guys to fear,” News4JAX Crime and Safety Analyst Tom Hackney said.
Hackney said the Miami Boys operated in Jacksonville in the mid-80s and 90s, and he said the group was responsible for a crack cocaine epidemic in the city.
“Not only a crack cocaine epidemic, but some of the highest murder numbers that this city has ever seen are associated. The crime rate went up, and so did the murder numbers," Hackney said.
In 1991, James was sentenced to life in prison for distributing crack cocaine, but his sentence was later reduced.
The DEA said that two years ago, James was selling cocaine and fentanyl in Jacksonville. The following year, a warrant was issued for his arrest.
While it’s unclear if drugs were seized during this traffic stop, Hackney said, given the intel investigators have on James, this arrest likely saved many lives from Miami to Waycross, Georgia, including Jacksonville.
“Think of all the lives that would be touched by some of this, and that product being removed. Big cogs in these games can be removed and really show an impact,” he said.
James is currently being held on a $1 million bond.