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A Goldsboro man was sentenced Thursday, December 15, 2022 to 106 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Eastern District of North Carolina. Brandon Phillips pleaded guilty to the charges on May 17, 2022.

According to court documents and information presented at the sentencing hearing, on August 5, 2020, a deputy with the Wake County Sheriff’s Office in Raleigh stopped a vehicle in which Phillips was a passenger.

“While conducting the traffic stop, the deputy observed Mr. Phillips moving around in the car as if trying to hide something,” stated the release. “After walking around the vehicle, a K-9 alerted to the presence of narcotics in the vehicle. A search by law enforcement ultimately led to the seizure of approximately 495.3 grams of crystal methamphetamine, $3,033 in U.S. currency, and drug paraphernalia.”

In related cases, two other defendants have previously been sentenced. Jason Michael Hyland was sentenced to 134 months in prison and Ashley Carol Shackelford was sentenced to 90 months in prison.

Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, made the announcement. The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Duplin County Sheriff’s Office and the Wake County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer C. Nucci prosecuted.

“This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation,” stated the release. “OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launders, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.”

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