Dyersburg Resident Sentenced to 20 Years Imprisonment for Federal Drug Trafficking Charges

Jackson, TN – Patricia Wilson of Dyersburg was sentenced to 240 months imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams or more of actual methamphetamine. U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant announced the sentence today.

According to information presented in court, beginning in early 2017, the FBI and Dyersburg Police Department became aware of an ongoing drug trafficking organization in the West Tennessee area, specifically Dyer County, Tennessee. The investigation, which lasted approximately one year, revealed that the organization was trafficking crystal methamphetamine (ice) from multiple residential locations within the City of Dyersburg. As a result, law enforcement officers developed further information from numerous sources which led to the execution of search warrants at residences of targets, search warrants for a stash house and a storage unit, search warrants for Facebook information, and search warrants for text messages. In order to further the investigation, agents also conducted traffic stops, obtained information from confidential sources, and made controlled purchases from the targets. The majority of the crystal methamphetamine (ice) recovered was tested at Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) laboratories and was determined to be 98% pure crystal methamphetamine. Wilson later admitted to investigators that she distributed the methamphetamine. The investigation further revealed that Wilson was responsible for the distribution of over 14 kilograms of ice during the time in question.

On February 20, 2018, a federal grand jury returned an 18-count superseding indictment against Wilson and the six other targets of the investigation for various counts of conspiracy to distribute, possession with the intent to distribute, aiding and abetting, and distribution of actual methamphetamine. Wilson was arrested on February 22, 2018, and detained pending trial. On November 7, 2018, Wilson pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of actual methamphetamine from November 2016 to January 2018.

U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, "Methamphetamine that is trafficked in and through West Tennessee continues to increase in purity, which increases its potential to cause addiction, injury, and death. Criminal enterprises that distribute these harmful drugs into our rural communities can no longer hide. We are taking the fight to the drug trafficking organizations in order to dismantle them and remove them from our streets."

On February 20, 2019, U.S. District Court Judge J. Daniel Breen sentenced Wilson to 240 months imprisonment followed by five years supervised release.

This prosecution is part of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt and dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.

This case was investigated by the Jackson division of the FBI Memphis Field Office and the Dyersburg Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jerry Kitchen prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

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