Multiple Defendants Plead Guilty to Drug Conspiracy Charges in Federal Gang Prosecution

Columbia, South Carolina --- United States Attorney Beth Drake announced today that Deshawn Earl Chestnut, age 24, Matthew DeWitt, age 27, and Stacy Cambas, age 30, pled guilty on Tuesday, May 16, 2017, to participating in a drug conspiracy that operated in the Florence, Charleston, and Myrtle Beach areas of South Carolina.  Timothy Singletary, age 22, also pled guilty on May 4, 2017, to participating in this drug conspiracy.  Their respective convictions subject them to up to 20 years imprisonment.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Moorman, lead Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Attorney for the District of South Carolina, noted that the prosecution is another OCDETF effort advanced in concert with local, state, and federal law enforcement.  OCDETF is a program administered by the Department of Justice that targets large scale, multi-state drug trafficking organizations.

Moorman told the Court during proceedings that these Defendants, working with other co-defendants, distributed heroin, cocaine, and/or marijuana to customers in Florence and Myrtle Beach.

The investigation has targeted members of the Billie East Side Bloods, a set of the United Blood Nation, and others who formed an agreement to distribute heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and marijuana in South Carolina, and to traffic in and possess firearms for the purpose of advancing the drug conspiracy. 

The investigation is being conducted by the FBI, the DEA, the Horry County Sheriff’s Office, the Horry County Police Department, the Myrtle Beach Police Department, the North Myrtle Beach Police Department, the 15th Circuit’s Drug Enforcement Unit, and the Georgetown Police Department.  The charges filed against the defendants in this operation are being prosecuted by Assistant US Attorneys Andy Moorman and Lauren Hummel. 

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