Three Armed Drug Traffickers Are Sentenced To Lengthy Prison Terms

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Three Gaston County drug trafficker were sentenced in federal court yesterday to prison terms ranging from nine to 17.5 years, announced Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.  Quinton Lavar Brown, 34, of Gastonia, was sentenced to 210 months in prison and five years of supervised release; Antwan Lamar Floyd, 35, of Gastonia, was sentenced to 144 months in prison and five years of supervised release; and Maurice Terrell Robinson, 29, of Dallas, N.C. was sentenced to 110 months in prison, followed by 6 years of supervised release.  Chief U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney presided over the sentencing hearings.

John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division, and Chief Robert C. Helton of the Gastonia Police Department join U.S. Attorney Murray in making today’s announcement.

According to court documents and information presented at the sentencing hearings, the three men were responsible for trafficking multiple kilograms of crack cocaine in and around Gaston County.  Court records show that, over the course of the investigation, law enforcement recovered from the defendants’ stash houses and residences more than $24,931 in cash, 74 grams of cocaine, 1.5 kilograms of marijuana, a money counter and four sets of digital scales.  In addition, law enforcement seized illegally possessed firearms, including one AK-47 assault rifle, one shotgun, four handguns, and ammunition. 

Brown, who engaged in drug trafficking while on supervised release for a previous federal drug and racketeering conspiracy conviction, pleaded guilty on May 2, 2018, to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute crack cocaine. Floyd pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute crack cocaine on April 11, 2018. Robinson, who was also on supervised release in connection with a previous federal drug, racketeering conspiracy and Hobbs Act Robbery conviction, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine on December 19, 2017. 

All three defendants are currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.  Federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.

            These convictions stem from an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional drug trafficking organizations and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt or dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.

            These cases are also part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority. In October 2017, as part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, Attorney General Sessions announced the reinvigoration of PSN.

            In making today’s announcement U.S. Attorney Murray thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Charlotte Division, and the Gastonia Police Department for their investigation of the case.

            Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven R. Kaufman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte was in charge of the prosecution.