FLORENCE, S.C. — Jerrell Roberts, 36, a current federal inmate, Antoinette Tyeisha Ricks, 36, and Tyree O’Bryant Russell, 23, both of Savannah, Georgia, were sentenced to multi-year terms in federal prison after pleading guilty in connection with a scheme to smuggle methamphetamine into a federal prison. Russell was sentenced to two years and Ricks was sentenced to more than three years after each pleaded guilty to attempting to provide methamphetamine to a federal prisoner. Roberts was sentenced to more than nine years after pleading guilty to attempting to possess methamphetamine as a federal prisoner.
Jerrell Roberts’ Role in the Methamphetamine Smuggling Scheme
Evidence presented to the court showed that in November of 2022, Roberts was incarcerated at a federal prison in South Carolina in connection with federal charges out of Georgia. In the early morning hours of Nov. 6, 2022, an unmanned drone crashed in the yard at the prison facility. The drone was equipped with a skyhook, which would enable it to carry something. Near where the drone crashed, law enforcement recovered a package wrapped in electronics chargers. The package contained approximately 38 grams of pure methamphetamine. Additional investigation revealed that Roberts was working with Ricks and Russell to obtain methamphetamine for distribution in the federal prison.
“Crime doesn’t stop when defendants enter the prison gates,” said U.S. Attorney Bryan P. Stirling for the District of South Carolina. “Contraband smuggling schemes like this are not only illegal but dangerous, and the sentences handed down today reflect the seriousness of these crimes.”
United States District Judge Joseph Dawson, III sentenced Russell to 24 months imprisonment. Judge Dawson sentenced Ricks to 39 months of imprisonment. Judge Dawson sentenced Jerrell Roberts to 110 months of imprisonment; Roberts’ 110-month term of imprisonment will run consecutive to the term of imprisonment he was serving on the federal charges out of Georgia at the time he engaged in the attempt to smuggle methamphetamine into the federal prison in South Carolina. All three defendants’ sentences will be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case against Jerrell Roberts and others was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the FBI Columbia field office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Flynn is prosecuting the case.
Local News Via - MyrtleBeachSC.com
