Man Convicted of Drug Conspiracy of Methamphetamine Hidden in Dog Food

RALEIGH – United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr. announced that today, BRANDON DUWAYNE WRIGHT, 33, of High Point, North Carolina, was convicted in federal court following a two-day trial before United States District Judge James C. Dever III.  WRIGHT was convicted of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute fifty grams or more of methamphetamine, and distribute and possess with the intent to distribute fifty grams or more of methamphetamine.

The jury heard evidence that WRIGHT traveled from Atlanta, Georgia to Greenville, North Carolina to deliver five kilograms of crystal methamphetamine hidden inside two large dog food bags and a box of laundry detergent.  WRIGHT met a cooperator in a parking lot of a Walmart in Greenville, North Carolina and provided what WRIGHT described as groceries to the cooperator.  After receiving the dog food bags, law enforcement immediately noticed the packages had previously been opened as they were resealed with clear plastic tape. 

WRIGHT faces a minimum sentence of 10 years imprisonment and a maximum of life followed by no less than 5 years supervised release.

The prosecution of WRIGHT was a part of an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force Operation (OCDETF).  That effort has been implemented through the Take Back North Carolina Initiative of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.  This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices on a sustained basis in those communities to reduce the violent crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.

Investigation of this enforcement operation was conducted by the Greenville Regional Drug Task Force consisting of the Greenville Police Department, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Winterville Police Department, East Carolina University Police Department, and North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Dena King represented the government.