Pearl River Man Sentenced to Ten Years in Prison for Drug Trafficking on Choctaw Indian Reservation

Jackson, Miss. – A Pearl River man was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on the Choctaw Indian Reservation, announced U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Special Agent in Charge Brad Byerley of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

According to court documents, Antoniel Thomas Jr. 29, of the Pearl River Community of the Choctaw Indian Reservation, distributed methamphetamine on the Choctaw Indian Reservation from January 2020 to February of 2020.

In August of 2020, a federal grand jury indicted Thomas in a four-count indictment involving the possession and distribution of methamphetamine on the Choctaw Indian Reservation. On January 27, 2021, Thomas entered a plea of guilty to count one of the indictment charging conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.  

The case was investigated by the Choctaw Police Department of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, the U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin J. Payne and Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian Burns.