An Atlanta man has been sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for his involvement in a fentanyl distribution conspiracy in the Eastern District of Texas. Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs announced the sentencing.
Clarence Nero, aged 56, was convicted after a three-day trial for conspiring to traffic fentanyl. He received a sentence of 264 months from U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant on June 24, 2025.
Court information revealed that Nero organized a fentanyl trafficking operation that smuggled the drug across the United States border into Arizona and then transported it from Phoenix to New Orleans and along the east coast.
On February 14, 2022, Quanita Brown was stopped on Highway 380 in Denton County with 2.5 kilograms of fentanyl hidden in a false compartment of her vehicle. A police K-9 alerted officers to the presence of illegal drugs. The investigation identified Nero as the main supplier responsible for trafficking fentanyl throughout the southern United States.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, an initiative by the Department of Justice aimed at combating illegal immigration and dismantling cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs). The operation utilizes resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations and the Denton County Sheriff’s Office, with prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Anderson and Chris Rapp.
