A Lee County man, Curtis Phillips, aged 45, has been sentenced to 360 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Danny C. Reeves. The charges include possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Phillips' plea agreement reveals that on March 17, 2023, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office found him unconscious in a vehicle parked at a residence. A search uncovered over a kilogram of pure methamphetamine, fentanyl, $8,000 in cash, and digital scales used for drug trafficking. On June 18, 2024, Phillips was again found passed out in a vehicle by law enforcement officers who discovered a loaded firearm at his feet. Phillips admitted to possessing the firearm despite being aware of his felony conviction status prohibiting such possession.
Federal law mandates that Phillips serve at least 85 percent of his sentence. After release from prison, he will be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for five years.
The sentencing was announced jointly by Paul C. McCaffrey, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; John Nokes, Special Agent in Charge at ATF's Louisville Field Division; Sheriff Joseph Lucas from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office; and Sheriff Tara Chadwell from the Owsley County Sheriff’s Office.
The investigation involved collaboration between the ATF and sheriff's offices from Lee and Owsley counties. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paco Villalobos is handling the prosecution.
