Four Harrisburg Men Indicted For Trafficking Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, And Firearms Charges

HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Devonte Betts, 29; Rodney McMillian, 41; Lamarr Waters, 34; and Tyreese Nealy, 23 of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, were indicted in a seventeen-count indictment on June 7, 2023, by a federal grand jury on drug trafficking and firearms charges.

According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, the indictment alleges that beginning on August 3, 2022, and continuing through May 10, 2023, the four men conspired to distribute and did distribute a significant amount of methamphetamine and fentanyl.  The indictment also alleges that Betts, Waters and McMillian trafficked firearms, selling at least seven firearms between October 20, 2022, and February 18, 2023.  On the morning of June 8, 2023, in a joint operation among federal, state, and local authorities, each of the defendants were taken into custody based on arrest warrants that had been issued.  Authorities also executed numerous search warrants during the operation, and seized eight additional firearms, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, 420 fentanyl pills, cocaine, several pounds of marijuana and materials used to process and traffic narcotics.  

The four men were arraigned in federal court and their detention was ordered pending further hearings that will take place on June 12, 2023. 

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, Pennsylvania State Police and the Harrisburg Police Bureau.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul J. Miovas, Jr. is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

This case was also brought in part as a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.

The aggregate maximum penalty under federal law for these offenses is life imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

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