RICHMOND, Va. - A North Carolina man was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role as the leader of a lengthy and extensive drug trafficking conspiracy.
According to court documents, Deron Radarius Powell, 34, was the ringleader of a drug trafficking organization which operated in Emporia and the surrounding area dating back to 2013. During the conspiracy, Powell along with several other co-conspirators, distributed large amounts of crack cocaine, powder cocaine, heroin and marijuana to hundreds of customers in Virginia and North Carolina.
Name, Age
Hometown
Convictions
Sentence
Deron R. Powell, 34
Roanoke Rapids, NC
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
30 years
Marvin A. Baskerville, 44
Richmond
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
17 years
Steve A. Hicks, 42
Emporia
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
15 years
Hershell L. Grant, 52
Roanoke Rapids, NC
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
14 years
Dexter O. Banks, 30
Emporia
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
11 years
Crystal L. Mangrum, 29
Emporia
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
10 years
Brittany L. Owens, 28
Emporia
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
10 years
Vincent D. Anderson, 41
Emporia
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
10 years
Ronnie Rawles, 38
Emporia
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
7 years
Robert W. Little III, 70
Emporia
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
5 years
Cynthia M. Fox, 51
Emporia
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
4 years
Tracy M. Moody, 53
Roanoke Rapid, NC
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine
4 years
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Richmond Area Violent Enterprises Task Force, as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force’s (OCDETF), Operation Bulls Eye. The OCDETF program is a federal multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and John J. Lenkart, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office, Scott W. Hoernke, Acting Special Agent in Charge for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Washington Field Division, Ricky Pinksaw, Chief of the Emporia Police Department, William T. Jarratt Jr., Sheriff of the Greensville County, and Colonel Gary T. Settle, Superintendent of the Virginia State Police, made the announcement after sentencing yesterday by Senior U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne. Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter S. Duffey prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:18-cr-80.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
