NEWS RELEASE
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
WESTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA
John L. Brownlee United States Attorney Brian McGinn Public Affairs Specialist |
BB&T Building 310 1st Street, S.W., Room 906 Roanoke, Virginia 24011 (540) 857-2974 FAX (540) 857-2179 |
February 11, 2008
BRISTOL MAN CONVICTED OF FOURTH DRUG TRAFFICKING OFFENSE
RECEIVES THIRTY YEAR SENTENCE FOR CRACK COCAINE CONSPIRACY
United States Attorney John L. Brownlee announced today that DEMETRIUS TYRONE GARDNER, 33, of Bristol, Virginia, was sentenced to thirty years in prison in Abingdon, Virginia, by United States District Judge James P. Jones for charges relating to the distribution of crack cocaine and perjury. GARDNER was previously found guilty by a jury of one charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute fifty grams or more of crack cocaine, and two charges of perjury. GARDNER, who had three prior convictions for felony drug offenses and had also previously been convicted of taking indecent liberties with a minor, was sentenced to serve a term of thirty years in prison on the charge of conspiracy to distribute fifty grams or more of crack cocaine, and five years on each charge of perjury, which were ordered to run concurrently with the thirty year sentence. He was also ordered to serve a term of ten years of supervised release upon his release from prison.
According to evidence presented at trial by Assistant United States Attorney, Zachary Lee, GARDNER, who had previously been convicted both in state and federal court for felony drug offenses relating to the distribution of cocaine, was involved in the distribution of crack cocaine in the Bristol, Virginia and Tennessee areas between August 1, 2006, and October 27, 2006. On October 23, 2006, GARDNER sold crack cocaine, valued at $150, to a confidential informant working with the Bristol, Virginia Police Department during a transaction that occurred on State Street in Bristol, Tennessee. On October 27, 2006, GARDNER was arrested at his residence by local and federal authorities for violations of his federal supervised release. At the time of his arrest, he was found to be in possession of $1,500 in United States Currency and a small amount of crack cocaine was found on the ground near where he was arrested. Subsequent to his arrest, GARDNER admitted that he had been setting-up five to six drug transactions a week since August 2006 with different individuals in the Bristol area, each deal for approximately one ounce of crack cocaine. GARDNER further stated that he received $200 for each deal that he arranged. The perjury charges stemmed from false statements that GARDNER made during hearings related to his violations of supervised release and his involvement in criminal activity.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Bristol, Virginia Police Department Vice-Narcotics Unit and the Bristol Office of the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee of the United States Attorney’s Office in Abingdon prosecuted the case.