Fort Smith, Arkansas - Conner Eldridge, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Randal Jernigan, age 31, of Fort Smith, Arkansas, was sentenced today on one count of Distribution of Methamphetamine. Jernigan was sentenced to 84 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. United States District Court Judge P. K. Holmes, III presided over the sentencing in the United States District Court in Fort Smith.
United States Attorney Eldridge commented, “The trafficking and distribution of illegal drugs represents a tremendous problem in our communities, bringing crime and violence onto our streets, and exposing our children to serious risks. Today’s sentence shows that our office, joined by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, remains committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal drug trafficking in Fort Smith and across the Western District of Arkansas."
According to court records, on April 30, 2014, a confidential informant working with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) met with Randal Jernigan at a local business in Fort Smith to discuss arrangements for a drug deal later that day. During their meeting, Jernigan agreed to meet with the confidential informant at a local Fort Smith residence to conduct the drug deal. Later that day, the confidential informant met with Jernigan at the agreed upon local residence, where Jernigan provided approximately one ounce of methamphetamine in exchange for $1,000.00. The methamphetamine was then sent to the DEA Crime Laboratory, which determined the substance provided by Jernigan contained 27.5 grams of actual methamphetamine. Jernigan pleaded guilty to one count of Distribution of Methamphetamine on Sept. 30, 2014.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Fort Smith Police Department, and the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Clay Fowlkes prosecuted the case for the United States.
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Related court documents may be found on the Public Access to Electronic Records website @ www.pacer.gov
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
