United States v. McFarland (116 F.3d 316, 1997)

FAGG, Circuit Judge.

A jury convicted John McFarland and Darryl Warren of conspiring to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, heroin, and marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 846 (1994), and also found McFarland guilty of interstate travel in aid of racketeering in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1952(a)(3) (1994). No purpose would be served by reciting at length the facts of this case. The testimony of police officers, postal inspectors, and unindicted co-conspirators painted a picture of a five-yearlong scheme, involving McFarland, Warren, and ten others, to transport large quantities of illegal drugs from California for distribution in and around St. Louis, Missouri. Warren appeals his conviction and McFarland appeals his convictions and sentence. We affirm.

Warren challenges the sufficiency of the evidence against him by contending the testimony of eoconspirator witnesses who linked him to the conspiracy was unworthy of belief. Witness credibility is for the jury to decide, not for us. See United States v. Rogers, 91 F.3d 53, 57 (8th Cir.1996). Warren also urges reversal because the evidence does not eliminate every possibility that Warren is innocent. To be sufficient, however, the evidence need not do so. See United States v. McMurray, 34 F.3d 1405, 1412 (8th Cir.1994). As long as “there is an interpretation of the evidence that would permit a reasonable jury to find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt,” the jury’s verdict stands. United States v. Maza, 93 F.3d 1390, 1399 (8th Cir.1996), cert. denied, - U.S. -, -, 117 S.Ct. 1008, 136 L.Ed.2d 886 (1997). Where, as here, the evidence establishes the existence of a conspiracy, only slight evidence connecting Warren to the conspiracy is enough to sustain his conviction. See id.

The Government introduced far more than slight evidence against Warren. Besides coconspirator testimony linking Warren to McFarland’s drug business in 1994 and 1995, the jury heard about a 1990 police stop of Warren, McFarland, and a third person in a vehicle containing a kilogram of cocaine. Questioned separately, the three told police conflicting stories about where they had been and with whom they had stayed. The jury also learned about the substantial and unexplained gap between Warren’s spending and his reported income. Further, when police searched Warren’s bedroom they found $9,000 in cash, along with a drug lédger similar to one of McFarland’s, a photograph of Warren and a coconspirator, the California address of another coconspirator, and California addresses and phone numbers for McFarland. Viewing this evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict, see Rogers, 91 F.3d at 57, we conclude it amply supports Warren’s conviction.

We turn now to McFarland’s appeal. McFarland first contends the district court wrongly denied his motion to suppress evidence gathered during warrantless searches of his residence and a storage locker rented in his name. At the time these searches were carried out, McFarland was on parole from a California prison; subject to this condition: “You and your residence and any property under your control may be searched without á warrant at any time by any agent of the Department