FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – Today, U.S. Attorney Michael Easley, along with federal and local law enforcement, announced ongoing and coordinated efforts to address violent crime and drug trafficking in Fayetteville and surrounding areas. This effort was conducted as part of two strategic initiatives underway in the region: the Violent Crime Action...

NEW BERN, N.C. – A three-judge panel from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a unanimous, published opinion affirming former physician Jong Whan Kim’s conviction and sentence for operating a pill mill in Tabor City. The Fourth Circuit’s decision was the first published opinion by the Court upholding a...

WILMINGTON, N.C. – Dr. Mark S.T. Armitage, a physician practicing with Pelican Family Medicine in Wilmington, North Carolina, agreed to pay $170,000 to resolve alleged violations of the Controlled Substances Act. Dr. Armitage, who previously surrendered his Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) registration to prescribe controlled substances, further agreed not to...

ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. – A Beulaville man was sentenced today to 200 months in prison for conspiracy and distribution of cocaine base (crack) and fentanyl. Four people died from overdoses after consuming drugs sold by Marshall Ray Scarborough on a single day in April 2021. Scarborough was also ordered to...

RALEIGH, N.C. – A former Fuquay-Varina nurse was sentenced today to 48 months in prison and three years of supervised release for tampering with painkillers intended for surgery patients. On March 9, 2022, Melissa Elizabeth Chacona pled guilty to the charges. “Surgical patients trust healthcare providers to give them the...

RALEIGH, N.C. – Today, U.S. Attorney Michael Easley, along with federal and local law enforcement, provided information related to ongoing and coordinated efforts to target drug distribution in Sampson and Duplin Counties. Last week, a joint operation took place with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the...

NEW BERN, N.C. – A Fayetteville, North Carolina man who now has ten felony convictions was sentenced today to 240 months in prison for drug conspiracy charges involving heroin and fentanyl, possession with intent to distribute heroin, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. On...

WILMINGTON, N.C. – Alphonso Lewis, 47, of Raleigh, was sentenced to 121 months for conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. According to court documents, evidence presented in court, and...

ASHEVILLE, NC – Megan Emily Tate, 29, of Sylva, N.C., was sentenced today to 20 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release, for distributing a substance that contained fentanyl and caused two overdoses, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Robert...

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Rebecca Lynn Barker, 50, of Sylva, N.C., was sentenced today to 188 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release on drug conspiracy charges, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. According to filed documents and today’s sentencing hearing...