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Press Release
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – On Apr. 22, 2014, Harry Joseph Cannon, 50, of Bristol, Tenn., pleaded guilty before the Honorable R. Leon Jordan, U.S. District Judge, to conspiring to distribute, and possess with the intent to distribute, assorted Schedule I controlled substances, and Schedule I controlled substance analogues, commonly known as “bath salts” or “spice”.
Sentencing is set for 10:30 a.m., Aug. 19, 2014, in U.S. District Court, Greeneville. He faces up to 20 years in prison. Federal sentences are not parolable.
From March 2011 to October 2013, Cannon conspired with various other persons to distribute, and possess with the intent to distribute “bath salts” and “spice”. Canon sold these substances from his store, 420 Emporium, in Bristol, Tenn. During the investigation, law enforcement conducted a series of undercover drug purchases from Cannon and 420 Emporium. Those purchases led to federal search warrants being executed on two separate occasions in March 2012 and October 2012. In both instances, agents recovered extensive amounts of Schedule I controlled substances, and Schedule I controlled substance analogues. Most of these drugs were already prepackaged for resale. Numerous firearms were also recovered.
This long term investigation was the product of a partnership between the Bristol Tennessee Police Department, Second Judicial District Drug Task Force, Sullivan County Sherriff’s Office, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nick Regalia represented the United States.
The investigation is a result of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s drug supply reduction strategy. OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multi-level attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply.