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Press Release

Catawba Man Is Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison For Trafficking Fentanyl And Methamphetamine

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of North Carolina

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Antoine Durel Reid, 39, of Catawba, N.C., was sentenced to 10 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release today for trafficking fentanyl and methamphetamine, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

Bennie Mims, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Charlotte Field Division, Sheriff Donald G. Brown, II, of the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office, and Chief Reed Baer of the Hickory Police Department, join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.

According to filed court documents and statements made in court, law enforcement were investigating Reid’s drug trafficking activities in Catawba County. On February 22, 2022, law enforcement conducting surveillance on Reid observed the defendant enter a vehicle with an expired license plate and proceeded to conduct a traffic stop. During a search of the vehicle, law enforcement found a black backpack that belonged to Reid. Inside the backpack, there was a Smith and Wesson SD9 VE 9mm silver and black pistol with 16 rounds of ammunition, almost half a kilogram of methamphetamine and over 260 grams of fentanyl packaged in Ziploc bags, and three digital scales. Reid also had $1,590 in his pockets.

According to court documents, on July 21, 2023, at about 11:15 p.m., officers responded to as service call at a gas station in Hickory in relation to an assault. Officers investigating the incident were informed that an assault had occurred where an individual had brandished a pistol. The officers reviewed video footage collected from the gas station. The officers recognized the assailant as Reid and obtained a warrant for his arrest. The following day, law enforcement went to Reid’s last known address to effectuate the arrest. When they arrived at the residence, they found Reid standing outside an SUV at the passenger door with another individual. Officers observed suspected drug paraphernalia and subsequently searched the vehicle. During the search, the officers located narcotics and a black Taurus G2C 9mm handgun, consistent with the firearm Reid was seen carrying on the gas station security footage. 

On August 8, 2024, Reid pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl. Reid is in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.

In making today’s announcement U.S. Attorney King thanked the ATF, the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office, and the Hickory Police Department for their investigation of the case.

Assistant United States Attorney Alfredo De La Rosa of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case. 

Updated December 19, 2024

Topics
Drugs
Drug Trafficking