Career criminal gets 20-year sentence for meth trafficking

The Albany Herald, Ga.
·4 min read
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Dec. 7—MACON — A career offender with a violent criminal history who participated in a middle Georgia drug trafficking network responsible for distributing approximately 16 kilograms of methamphetamine has been sentenced to serve 20 years in federal prison resulting from an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces investigation centered in Warner Robins.

Reginald Lowe, 41, of Warner Robins, was sentenced to serve 240 months in prison to be followed by four years of supervised release consecutive to a sentence he is currently serving in Houston County for an aggravated assault conviction after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Aug. 30. U.S. District Judge Tilman E. "Tripp" Self III handed down the sentence. There is no parole in the federal system.

"Armed and violent repeat offenders threaten the safety of our region and must be held accountable," U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary said in a news release. "The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces are at work in the Middle District of Georgia to identify and stop the most dangerous criminal organizations from operating in our communities."

"This investigation deals a fatal blow to a once-thriving 'meth' ring," Robert J. Murphy, the special agent in charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division, said. "With the leader facing up to 40 years behind bars, the community of Warner Robins and elsewhere can rest assured that their communities are much safer today thanks to the outstanding case work by DEA and our local law enforcement partners."

"The Warner Robins Police Department is honored to have worked in conjunction with our federal partners through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, which resulted in the outcome of this case," Chief Wayne Fisher of the Warner Robins Police Department said. "It is through such local, state and federal partnerships that impacts such as these can be realized. It was with great work and effort from the men and women of this task force, which resulted in these arrests, that will have an immeasurable impact for the good of our shared communities."

According to documents and other evidence admitted into court, Drug Enforcement Administration agents and Warner Robins Police Department officers investigated the drug trafficking organization based out of Warner Robins of co-defendant Ontarrio Veal, aka Torrie, 32, of Warner Robins, from January to June 2020. Law enforcement obtained court orders to intercept the phone calls and text messages from Veal's and co-defendant Tamara Hall's cellphones.

Agents learned that Veal was a multikilogram methamphetamine dealer and surveilled Veal and various co-defendants, including Lowe, conducting methamphetamine transactions and traveling to Atlanta to purchase large quantities of methamphetamine.

Veal was taken into custody on June 1 on a return trip from Atlanta in possession of three kilograms of methamphetamine and a Glock .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol with a 50-round drum magazine. Agents executed search warrants at various locations in middle Georgia, seizing multiple firearms and ammunition, methamphetamine and more than $100,000 in cash.

Lowe is a career offender with a lengthy criminal history that includes a prior conviction for aggravated assault in Houston County Superior Court.

Veal pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Nov. 15 and faces a maximum term of 40 years in prison to be followed by at least four years of supervised release and a $5 million fine. Sentencing is scheduled for March 7.

Seven additional co-defendants have pleaded guilty and/or been sentenced in this case:

— Matthew Kay, 35, of Warner Robins, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Sept. 6;

— Donna Ussery, 31, of Warner Robins, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on April 19 and was sentenced to serve 100 months in prison on Oct. 4;

— Marquell Gaines, aka Paris, 38, of Warner Robins, pleaded guilty to use of a communication facility to conspire to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to serve 48 months in prison on Oct. 11;

— Tamara Hall, 39, of Warner Robins, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on April 19. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 10;

— Milton Simmons, aka Mann, 40, of Macon, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Aug. 1. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 10;

— Parsa Ervin, 45, of Warner Robins, pleaded guilty to two counts of use of a communication facility to conspire to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Aug. 30. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 10;

— Eddie Linkhorn, 42, of Warner Robins, pleaded guilty to two counts of use of a communication facility to conspire to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 10.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

This case is being investigated by Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Warner Robins Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Will Keyes is prosecuting the case.