Defendant in Augusta meth trafficking ring sentenced to 23 years in prison

Alexandra Koch, Augusta Chronicle
·2 min read

A Georgia prison inmate who led an Augusta-area methamphetamine trafficking ring from behind bars was sentenced to more than two decades in federal prison.

Magnum Jelani Neely, 38, of Millen, Georgia, an inmate at Dooly State Prison, was sentenced to 278 months in federal prison after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, according to David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

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U.S. District Court Chief Judge J. Randal Hall also ordered Neely to pay a $2,500 fine and serve five years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

“Magnum Neely orchestrated a large-scale meth distribution operation from behind bars while serving a 10-year state sentence for violent crime,” said Estes. “This investigation dismantled that drug-trafficking operation, and substantial federal sentences hold these drug dealers accountable.”

Agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in November 2021 joined investigators from the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office and the Burke County Sheriff’s Office in identifying Neely as coordinating a methamphetamine trafficking operation from inside prison, according to a release from the the U.S. Attorney's Office. Neely used contraband cell phones to contact couriers outside prison to deliver drugs to buyers both inside and outside Georgia prisons.

The Georgia Department of Corrections assisted in the investigation, and Neely and three co-conspirators were indicted in April 2022. All four defendants pleaded guilty.

The three co-conspirators include:

  • Patricia Gregory, 45, of Augusta, was sentenced to 87 months in prison and fined $2,000 after pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.

  • Fanesia Smith, 39, of Augusta, was sentenced to 48 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.

  • Yvonne Smith, 58, of Augusta, mother of Fanesia Smith, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to misprision of a felony for knowing of, and helping to conceal, the criminal activity of the conspiracy.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Georgia man sentenced for operating Augusta meth ring from behind bars