TSA Officer And Seven Others Arrested On Drug Conspiracy Charges

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – United States Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose announced that eight individuals were arrested on Wednesday, November 9, 2016, on federal drug conspiracy charges for their involvement in a drug trafficking network operating in Charlotte and Greensboro, N.C.  The criminal complaint was unsealed today following the defendants’ court appearances in federal court.

John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in North Carolina and Harold Scott, Jr., Special Agent in Charge, Office of Inspection - Washington Field Office of the Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration (TSA) join U.S. Attorney Rose in making today’s announcement.

The eight defendants named in the criminal complaint were arrested on charges of conspiracy and attempt to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute Schedule I and Schedule II controlled substances; and distribution of controlled substances and possession with intent to distribute Schedule I and Schedule II controlled substances.  They are:

• Jamie Blunder, 48, of Charlotte.
• David Pate, 44, of High Point, N.C.
• Alafia Fowlkes, 42, of Jamestown, N.C.
• Samuel Little, 58, of Greensboro.
• Irvin Lampley, 56, of Greensboro.
• Aaron Dixon, 40, of Greenville, N.C.
• Cameron Roberts, 29, of Greensboro.
• Dennis Harrington, 47, of Greensboro.

A ninth defendant named in the charging document, Willie Nevius, 48, of Greensboro, has not been arrested yet.

According to allegations contained in the criminal complaint, beginning in at least December 2015, the defendants operated as a drug conspiracy responsible for trafficking cocaine, marijuana and other controlled substances in Charlotte and Greensboro.  The criminal complaint alleges that Blunder, a TSA officer, was the leader of the conspiracy and used a network of co-conspirators to transport and distribute the narcotics to and from Greensboro and elsewhere. According to the affidavit filed with the criminal complaint, the investigation to date indicates that while Blunder did not utilize the Charlotte Douglas Airport to traffic narcotics, he may have relied on his TSA position to avoid law enforcement detection while travelling to, within, and back from the Jamestown, High Point, and Greensboro areas.

In addition to last week’s arrest of the eight defendants, law enforcement executed multiple search warrants and recovered eight firearms, at least two kilograms of cocaine and more than $150,000 in cash.  Over the course of the investigation, law enforcement also recovered drug paraphernalia and packaging material consistent with kilogram-quantity cocaine wrapping and packaging. 

The charges contained in the complaint are allegations.  The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

U.S. Attorney Rose thanked the FBI for leading the investigation and TSA for their invaluable assistance with this case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Corey Ellis and Lambert Guinn of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte is prosecuting the case.