Tallahassee Sun

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida issued the following announcement on Jan. 3.

With the sentencing of the last of 25 defendants, federal prosecutors this week wrapped up a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking organization operating primarily within Taylor and Madison counties in Florida, and Colquitt County, Georgia. The final defendant, Patrick Lemuel Bass of Taylor County, was sentenced to eight years in prison for his part in the conspiracy. The convictions and sentences in the conspiracy were announced by Lawrence Keefe, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

During the fall of 2017, an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force began investigating the distribution of methamphetamine — commonly referred to as “ice”— within Taylor and Madison counties. A total of 25 defendants were charged in a series of indictments returned in 2017 and 2018. The defendants were convicted and sentenced for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute varying amounts of methamphetamine. The investigation also involved numerous undercover controlled purchases by law enforcement during the trafficking conspiracy.

The defendants and their sentences are:

• Robert Shane Willis, Taylor County, Florida, 108 months in prison;

• Robert Edward Lee, Madison County, Florida, 102 months in prison;

• Takayla Rene Sanders, Colquitt County, Georgia, 96 months in prison;

• Patrick Lemuel Bass, Taylor County, Florida, 96 months in prison;

• Robert Wayne Cornwell, Taylor County, Florida, 96 months in prison;

• Joseph Brian Stafford, Taylor County, Florida, 96 months in prison;

• James Antony Farrill, Taylor County, Florida, 84 months in prison;

• Keith Eric Sadowski, Taylor County, Florida, 78 months in prison;

• Christopher Keith Irvin, Taylor County, Florida, 72 months in prison;

• Jessica Rae Mauldin, Madison County, Florida, 72 month in prison;

• Kevin Wayne Knippel, Colquitt County, Georgia, 72 months in prison;

• Eric Jason Gilbreath, Taylor County, Florida, 72 months in prison;

• Bryan Heath Willis, Taylor County, Florida, 66 months in prison;

• John Wayne Dixon, Taylor County, Florida, 60 months in prison;

• Christopher Castleberry, Colquitt County, Georgia, 60 months in prison;

• Marlo Howard, Madison County, Florida, 48 months in prison;

• Travis Ryan Crosby, Madison County, Florida, 48 months in prison;

• Joshua Lynn Gilbreath, Taylor County, Florida, 48 months in prison;

• Brandon Douglas Hall, Colquitt County, Georgia, 42 months in prison;

• Lisa Marie Ezell, Taylor County, Florida, 39 months in prison;

• Jerry Franklin Sapp, Madison County, Florida, 36 months in prison;

• Raymond Cody Williams, Madison County, Florida, 366 days in prison;

• Samantha Agner Crouse, Taylor County, Florida, 12 months in prison;

• Jamie Lynn Baumgardner, Taylor County, Florida, 8 years of supervised release; and

• Miranda Marie Stafford, Taylor County, Florida, 5 years of supervised release.

This case resulted from an investigation by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Florida Department of Law Enforcement; the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office, Madison County Sheriff’s Office, Perry Police Department, and Monticello Police Department in Florida; the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office and Thomas County Sheriff’s Office in Georgia; and the Florida Highway Patrol and Florida National Guard. Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher J. Thielemann, Eric K. Mountin, James A. McCain, and Jason R. Coody prosecuted the cases.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

Original source can be found here.