Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated that TROY DEMETRIUS WRIGHT, age 31, of Cordova, South Carolina was sentenced today in federal court. Chief United States District Judge Margaret B. Seymour of Columbia sentenced WRIGHT to a total of 262 months (21.8 years) imprisonment with six (6) years of supervised release to follow. WRIGHT plead guilty in February to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, possession with intent to distribute a quantity of cocaine, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, all in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1), 924(e), and 924(c) and Title 21, United
States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B).

Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that on September 2, 2010, at approximately 1:29 p.m., an officer with the Orangeburg Department of Public Safety conducted a lawful traffic stop of a vehicle driven by WRIGHT. When the officer approached the vehicle in the parking lot of McDonald’s, WRIGHT fled from the scene on foot and was able to avoid arrest that day. Inside the vehicle, officers recovered a bag containing 28.8 grams of cocaine and a loaded Armscor 9mm handgun with 23 rounds of 9mm ammunition. WRIGHT was identified by the officer and later arrested.

WRIGHT is prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms and/or ammunition based upon his prior separate state convictions for burglary of a dwelling 3rd degree (2 counts), possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession of crack cocaine, and
forgery. WRIGHT was deemed a career offender and an armed career criminal for sentencing purposes based upon his extensive prior record.

The case was investigated by the Orangeburg Department of Public Safety, the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division (SLED), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state and local Project CeaseFire initiative, which aggressively prosecutes firearm cases. Assistant United States Attorney Stacey D. Haynes of the Columbia office handled the case.

 

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