Larry Thomas Williams Sentenced To 140 Months On Large Scale Marijuana Conspiracy Conviction

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – On Oct. 19, 2015, Larry Thomas Williams, 67, of Mendota, Va., was sentenced by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Court Judge, to serve 140 months in federal prison for his role in an extensive marijuana distribution conspiracy centered in the Eastern District of Tennessee and Western District of Virginia, with sources of supply in and around the Los Angeles, Cal., area.

According to the plea agreement on file with the U.S. District Court, Williams admitted to selling ounce quantities of marijuana in May and June 2007, to an individual working on behalf of law enforcement in Russell County, Va.  He admitted to conspiring to distribute marijuana for many years in the Eastern District of Tennessee.  In a recorded July 2013 meeting in Bristol, Va., Williams told an individual working with law enforcement that he had hauled marijuana for the last 17 years and that he was interested in purchasing up to 50 pounds of marijuana at a time.  He discussed, with this same individual, the best times of the day to transport marijuana and the fact that Tennessee was making it hard on smugglers.  Williams also admitted to dealing in marijuana with one particular co-conspirator for 10 years, to which he owed a drug debt. However, since that individual was now deceased, he considered the debt to be severance pay.  He further admitted to knowing the location of 256 pounds of marijuana that has been missing since this co-conspirator passed away.

Law enforcement agencies participating in the investigation which led to the indictment and subsequent conviction of Larry Thomas Williams include the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, IRS Criminal Investigation Division, Second District Judicial Drug Task Force, Kingsport Police Department and Russell County, Virginia Sheriff’s Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Taylor represented the United States.

###