David Clay Fowlkes, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas
Fifteen individuals linked to a South Arkansas drug trafficking organization have been sentenced to a total of 1,591 months in federal prison. The sentences were handed down by Chief Judge Susan O. Hickey at the United States District Court in El Dorado, Arkansas, from August 2024 to May 2025. There is no parole available in the federal system.
Court documents reveal that Christopher Walters, aged 45 and from Magnolia, Arkansas, led the drug trafficking operation between August 2021 and August 2022. He distributed large quantities of methamphetamine around Columbia County, sourcing his supply from Michael Cummings, a business owner in Southern California who also acted as an interstate narcotics supplier. Cummings enlisted Robert Leonne Morris from Los Angeles to transport methamphetamine and other drugs to Walters in Arkansas.
In August 2022, search warrants executed by the FBI and local authorities on properties connected to the organization uncovered methamphetamine, fentanyl, cocaine, firearms including tactical rifles, and cash.
Following investigations between September 2022 and March 2023 by a federal grand jury in the Western District of Arkansas, fifteen members associated with Walters' organization were charged with fifty felony counts. All defendants pleaded guilty under the Controlled Substances Act.
The list of those sentenced includes Christopher Walters; Michael Cummings; Jvance Radford; Joseph Lowe; Robert Leonne Morris; Lacadran D. Thomas; Marcus S. Jordan; Hendrick Johnson; Dawnisha D. Jordan; John L. Grissom; Jarrod D. Wilson; Nyterious L. Sharp; Antonio J. Johnson; Malaysia D. Benjamin; and Mario L. Meadows.
A $100,000 money judgment was issued against Cummings for his profits from distributing methamphetamine over one year in South Arkansas—enforceable against his assets nationwide.
U.S. Attorney David Clay Fowlkes announced these developments following investigations by multiple agencies including the Magnolia Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Graham Jones prosecuted the case under OCDETF guidelines aimed at dismantling high-level criminal organizations through multi-agency cooperation.
For further details on OCDETF operations visit www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
