NEW BERN - United States Attorney Thomas Walker and District Attorney Scott Thomas announced that today in federal court, United States District Judge Louise W. Flanagan sentenced BRANDON JAMAR BELL, 27, of Bayboro, NC to 195 months imprisonment, followed by 5 years of supervised release. BELL was also ordered to pay $780 in restitution to the Pamlico County Sheriff’s Office. If he is unable to pay the restitution, he will be required to participate in the Bureau of Prisons’ Inmate Financial Responsibility Program to pay the restitution while he is incarcerated.
Bell was named in an Indictment filed on May 23, 2012, charging him and Don Elbert Lewis, also of Bayboro, with conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base (crack) and 5 kilograms or more of cocaine between 2004 and March 2012. On Sept. 11, 2012, Bell pled guilty to that charge. Lewis was sentenced on Jan. 10, 2012, to 15 years imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release for his role in the conspiracy.
According to the investigation, officers with the Pamlico County Sheriff’s Office utilized a confidential informant to purchase cocaine base (crack) from BELL and Lewis on a number of occasions in January through March 2012. Several of these controlled purchases took place at Lewis’ residence in Bayboro and further investigation revealed that Lewis allowed BELL and other area drug dealers to use his residence to process and sell narcotics in exchange for either drugs or proceeds from drug sales. In total, over 14 kilograms of cocaine and cocaine base (crack) were either processed or sold from Lewis’ residence.
Investigation of this case was conducted by the Coastal Narcotics Enforcement Team, a multi-agency task force comprised of agents from the Craven County Sheriff’s Office, Havelock Police Department, Jones County Sheriff’s Office, New Bern Police Department, Pamlico County Sheriff’s Office, River Bend Police Department, State Bureau of Investigation and Trent Woods Police Department. Special Assistant United States Attorney Augustus Willis represented the government in these matters. Mr. Willis is a prosecutor with District 3-B District Attorney’s Office encompassing Carteret, Craven and Pamlico Counties. District Attorney Scott Thomas has assigned him to the United States Attorney’s Office to prosecute federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force criminal matters. Mr. Wills’ position is funded through a grant provided by the Governor’s Crime Commission.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys