Fifth Defendant in Multi-Agency Drug Trafficking Investigation Sentenced to 120 Months for Attempting to Possess Fentanyl for Distribution

MADISON, WIS. – Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Reginald Jemison, 56, Chicago, Illinois was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson to 120 months in prison for attempting to possess fentanyl with intent to distribute.  Jemison pleaded guilty to this charge on June 8, 2023. 

In 2020, federal and state law enforcement agencies collaborated to investigate several known drug traffickers in Dane County, Wisconsin.  As part of this investigation, the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) learned that an individual in Chicago, later identified as Jemison, coordinated with Andre McClinton to ship a parcel of narcotics to an apartment building in Madison, Wisconsin via the U.S. Mail.

On December 7, 2020, a U.S. Postal Inspector identified the parcel, obtained a federal warrant, and searched the package.  Inside, investigators found a vacuum-sealed bag that contained a white substance.  The substance weighed approximately 590 grams, and the Wisconsin State Crime Lab determined it tested positive for the presence of fentanyl.  DCI agents took custody of the drugs and resealed the parcel for a controlled delivery. 

Later on December 7, 2020, investigators delivered the parcel to the address in Madison.  Approximately one minute after delivering the parcel, a silver sedan with Illinois license plates pulled up to the building. A male subject exited the front passenger seat, walked towards the building, and took the parcel.  Law enforcement arrested the subject, later identified as Jeffrey Kemp, as he put the parcel into the sedan.  Officers also arrested the driver of the vehicle, who agents identified as Antonio Dillard.

During post-arrest interviews, Kemp and Dillard admitted that Jemison paid them to pick up the parcel and transport the drugs back to Chicago for distribution.    

In sentencing Jemison, Judge Peterson underscored the seriousness of Jemison’s crime.  Judge Peterson specifically noted that Jemison attempted to possess a significant amount of dangerous drug that has caused thousands of overdose deaths in the United States. 

On May 6, 2022, Judge Peterson sentenced Jeffrey Kemp to 48 months in prison, and on April 1, 2022, Judge Peterson sentenced Antonio Dillard to 24 months in prison for their roles in attempting to possess the fentanyl with intent to distribute.  Additionally, Judge Peterson sentenced Andre McClinton on March 23, 2022 to 108 months in prison for conspiring to distribute cocaine and illegally possessing a firearm.  On December 9, 2021, Judge Peterson sentenced McClinton’s codefendant Michael C. Henderson to 84 months in prison for conspiring to distribute cocaine.

The charge against Jemison was the result of an investigation conducted by DCI, the Dane County Narcotics Task Force, Drug Enforcement Administration, United States Postal Inspection Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Chadwick M. Elgersma prosecuted this case.