Demetrius Stepp, a 45-year-old resident of Atlanta, Georgia, has been sentenced to over five years in federal prison. He pleaded guilty to three counts of distributing fentanyl and crack cocaine.
Court evidence indicated that during April and May 2022, a confidential informant collaborating with the Myrtle Beach Police Department purchased narcotics from Stepp on three occasions. Stepp allegedly sold the informant substances he claimed were heroin and crack cocaine. However, lab tests identified these substances as crack cocaine and fentanyl. Further investigation revealed that Stepp had been trafficking crack cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin throughout Horry County for several years, frequently conducting multiple drug sales daily.
United States District Judge Sherri A. Lydon sentenced Stepp to 70 months in prison, followed by six years of court-ordered supervision. The federal system does not offer parole.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Myrtle Beach Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Katherine Flynn and Matthew Ellis are prosecuting the case.
