GREENEVILLE, TN—Ladarius Lebron Blunt, 27, of Chattanooga, Tenn., and Jeremy Jermaine Whatley, 29, also of Chattanooga, Tenn., were sentenced on Sept. 3, 2014, by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Court Judge, to serve 188 months and 60 months, respectively, in federal prison. Both Blunt and Whatley were previously convicted of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine.

Beginning in 2011, law enforcement began investigating a large-scale crack cocaine conspiracy originating out of Chattanooga. As part of the conspiracy, numerous individuals, including Blunt and Whatley, trafficked kilogram quantities of crack cocaine to Johnson City for resale. Private vehicles, taxi cabs, and public transportation were commonly used to transport the drugs. Many of the coconspirators had ties to street gangs based in Chattanooga, including the Rollin’ 60’s Crips and the Woodlawn Crips. Upon arrival in Johnson City, Blunt, Whatley and others would distribute their drugs, return to Chattanooga with their drug sale proceeds, purchase additional drugs, and repeat the cycle.

As part of the investigation, law enforcement conducted a series of controlled drug transactions with Blunt, Whatley and other coconspirators. On two separate occasions, Blunt sold crack cocaine to individuals working on behalf of law enforcement. On two other occasions, Whatley did the same. Subsequent police actions found both Blunt and Whatley to be in possession of crack cocaine with intent to distribute.

One coconspirator remains to be sentenced in Greeneville. Numerous others are being prosecuted in Chattanooga.

This long term investigation was the product of a partnership between the Johnson City, Tennessee Police Department; Chattanooga, Tennessee Police Department; Federal Bureau of investigation; and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney Nick Regalia represented the United States.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a comprehensive national strategy that creates local partnerships with law enforcement agencies to effectively enforce existing gun laws. It provides more options to prosecutors, allowing them to utilize local, state, and federal laws to ensure that criminals who commit gun crime face tough sentences. PSN gives each federal district the flexibility it needs to focus on individual challenges that a specific community faces.

This case was also a result of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s drug supply reduction strategy. OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multi-level attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply.