Texarkana Men Plead Guilty and are Sentenced as Part of Operation Stateline Sweep

TEXARKANA, AR—Conner Eldridge, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas announced that two Texarkana men pled guilty and were sentenced as part of Operation Stateline Sweep. Jamondo Lewis, age 31, of Texarkana, Arkansas pleaded guilty on August 2, 2012, to conspiracy to distribute more than 280 grams of cocaine. Anthony Johnson, age 35, of Texarkana, Texas was sentenced to 130 months’ imprisonment with no parole and three years’ supervised release today for delivery of more than five grams of crack cocaine. The defendants are two of the 66 defendants that were charged in a federal indictment on September 14, 2011. Of the 66 defendants charged in the September indictment, 49 have pleaded guilty, 14 have been sentenced, and four remain fugitives. The Honorable Susan Hickey, presided over both cases in federal court in Texarkana, Arkansas.

Lewis, also known as “Mill” and/or “Real,” is a member of the criminal enterprise known as “Four Block,” which operates primarily in the Texarkana Division of the Western District of Arkansas as a drug trafficking operation (DTO). As a member of the Four Block DTO, Lewis conspired with individuals associated with the Four Block DTO and with others to distribute more than 280 grams of crack cocaine in and around Texarkana, Arkansas.

Throughout the course of the investigation, investigators made controlled purchases of crack cocaine from Jamondo Lewis and interviewed numerous witnesses and defendants who identified Lewis as a primary distributor of crack cocaine for the Four Block DTO. These witnesses also advised that Lewis routinely purchased up to one-half kilogram quantities of cocaine and would have the cocaine converted into crack cocaine to be sold. Lewis also instructed other co-conspirators to pick up and deliver drugs and money on his behalf. Over the course of this conspiracy, more than 280 grams of crack cocaine were distributed or possessed with the intent to distribute by Jamondo Lewis and his co-conspirators.

On March 1, 2012, Johnson entered a plea of guilty to count 157 of the 190-count indictment charging him with knowingly distributing 12.3312 grams of a mixture of substance containing cocaine base, commonly known as “crack cocaine,” a Schedule II controlled substance, in violation of Title 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1).

On May 12, 2011, officers with the Texarkana Bi-State Narcotics Task Force and the FBI conducted a controlled purchase of 12.33 grams of crack cocaine from Anthony R. Johnson.

The case was investigated by the Bi-State Narcotics Task Force, which is composed of representatives of the Texarkana Arkansas and the Texarkana Texas Police Departments, the Miller County Sheriff’s Office, and the FBI. Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Quinn prosecuted the case for the United States.