Brooklyn Man, Who Was Fugitive for 8 Years, Pleads Guilty to His Role in Heroin Conspiracy

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA —Dockim Deeshawn McKnight, 34, of Brooklyn, New York, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.

Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed that McKnight was one of 10 defendants charged in April 2014, following a series of court-authorized wiretaps over several telephones in the Columbia area. Six of the 10 defendants were arrested in April 2014, while four remained fugitives, including McKnight. McKnight remained a fugitive until his May 2022 arrest by the U.S. Marshals Service in Brooklyn. Two other fugitives were arrested in 2017 in Texas. The remaining fugitive arrested in September 2022 in Concord, North Carolina, is currently awaiting trial, and is innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The 2013 investigation revealed that a group of individuals in the Columbia area were obtaining heroin from various sources outside of South Carolina and then distributing it in the Midlands. Evidence indicated that the suppliers were initially getting the heroin in packages from India. Several packages destined for Columbia and containing heroin were intercepted by law enforcement during the investigation. Evidence further showed that the co-defendants later traveled to New York to obtain heroin and transported it back to Columbia where it was distributed. In June 2013, New York authorities seized 155 grams of heroin from McKnight and his girlfriend/co-defendant Jessany Lyons while they were preparing to board a bus back to South Carolina.

Eight of McKnight’s co-defendants earlier plead guilty to their role in the drug conspiracy here in South Carolina and were sentenced as follows: Eric Shawn Bradley of Columbia was sentenced to 210 months imprisonment with 8 years of supervised release; Michael Glover of Columbia was sentenced to 324 months imprisonment with 8 years of supervised release; Jihad Salahadeen Pollard of Columbia was sentenced to 121 months imprisonment with 4 years of supervised release; Kenneth Crawford, Jr., of Washington, D.C. and formerly of Columbia was sentenced to 120 months imprisonment with 8 years of supervised release;  Charles Raheem Bradley of Columbia was sentenced to 57 months imprisonment with 6 years of supervised release to follow; Anthony Troy Glover of Columbia was sentenced to 120 months imprisonment with 8 years of supervised release to follow; Larry Grover Bookman of Columbia was sentenced to 70 months imprisonment with 6 years of supervised release; and Jessany Lyons of Far Rockaway, New York, was sentenced to 37 months imprisonment with 3 years of supervised release. The New York heroin suppliers were charged and convicted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York for their role in the drug conspiracy.

McKnight faces a mandatory minimum of five years with a maximum penalty of 40 years in federal prison. He also faces a fine of up to $5,000,000, and at least 4 years of supervision to follow the term of imprisonment.  Senior U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr., accepted the guilty plea and will sentence McKnight after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) High Intensity Drug Task Force, which was comprised of agents and officers from the DEA, Homeland Security Investigations, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Secret Service, Columbia Police Department, Richland County Sheriff’s Department, South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division (SLED), Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, Kershaw County Sheriff’s Department, Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Department, and the Fifth Circuit Solicitor’s Office. The U.S. Marshals Service and the Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force-Charlotte Office assisted in locating the four fugitives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stacey D. Haynes of the Columbia United States Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case.