$186,000 in assets seized from Kent County businessman

The Drug Enforcement Agency on Tuesday updated the list of items its agents seized this summer from a Kent County business owner, the target of a criminal drug investigation involving multiple federal agencies.

In total, federal authorities at the DEA and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have taken at least $186,000 worth of assets from Eric L. Leonard.

Added to a list of items Tuesday is a 2005 Dodge Ram, a 2014 Cam-Am Spyder motorcycle, a 2010 Harley Davidson, a 2013 Land Rover Evoque, a 2005 Volvo semi-truck tractor, and four Rolex watches, records show.

Another individual, Hanifah Badia Shakir – a colleague of Leonard's – also was named on the latest asset seizure form posted online by the DEA.

Authorities previously announced they had seized during the past two months two semi-truck tractors, one trailer, a pickup, a sport-utility vehicle, five guns, nearly 2,000 rounds of ammunition and more than $6,600 in cash.

A grand jury this month indicted Eric L. Leonard, alleging he possessed with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of a substance that contained heroin around July 20. He is accused of committing a "10-plus year drug offense," according to the court documents.

Calls to phone numbers listed under Leonard's name have gone unanswered. His attorney, Stephen P. Patrizio, also did not respond to an interview request.

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Documents show agents seized the items belonging to Leonard and his shipping company, Versatile Trucking LLC, during raids in Smyrna and Wilmington on July 20, July 21 and Aug. 1.

The information was included in asset forfeiture disclosure lists from the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the latest being made public Tuesday.

Two pistols, two shotguns and a .22-caliber rifle also were taken, according to the documents. The paperwork does not give an address for where the items were seized.

Dave Cheplak, a special agent at the Baltimore ATF field office, said the case is ongoing and as a result he could not discuss it.

“The Eric Leonard case is an open federal investigation involving multiple agencies, and therefore we can’t speak about any details related to the case because we don’t want to jeopardize the integrity of any pending prosecution,” he said.

Kimberlynn Reeves, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Wilmington, also declined to comment.

Secretary of state records show Leonard owns Versatile Trucking, listed at 231 S. Du Pont Blvd., in Smyrna. The company owns three vehicles and employs three drivers, according to a U.S. Department of Transportation database.

Other businesses listed at the South Dupont Boulevard address are GettingLive Entertainment, Who Cares About Us Certified Nursing Training School LLC and Who Cares About Us Inc.

At the address sits a two-story beige building with a small playground adjacent to it. Posted above the two main entrances to the building are signs for Who Cares About Us and GettingLive Entertainment. No one responded to knocks on the doors of those entrances Monday afternoon.

According to the social media profiles on Linkedin and Facebook, an "Eriq Leonard" from Dover owns those businesses, as well as another company called Millennium Technology LLC, which is registered anonymously with the Office of the Secretary of State. It is not immediately clear why there are two different spellings of Leonard's first name.

GettingLive Entertainment is a video production company and promotes several Delaware hip-hop artists. Who Cares About Us provides childcare, and Millennium Technology sells "a new line of savvy tech watches," according to Leonard's social media pages.

Multiple phone calls from The News Journal to numbers listed under the names of those companies went unanswered.

Other individuals listed as officials with Leonard's companies did not reply to requests for comment.

Contact Karl Baker at kbaker@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2329. Follow him on Twitter @kbaker6.