United States Drug Enforcement Administration

BEAUMONT, Texas – A Beaumont man has pleaded guilty to federal drug trafficking violations following a Homeland Security Task Force investigation in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Brian C. Leardo of the Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.

James William Quinney, Jr., 38, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine before U.S. Magistrate Judge Zack Hawthorn on May 21, 2026. 

According to information presented in court, in October 2024, law enforcement began investigating Quinney for trafficking drugs in Beaumont and the surrounding area.  During the investigation, Quinney was identified as the leader of a drug trafficking organization that distributed kilogram quantities of methamphetamine to other distributors for redistribution.  Quinney was found to be purchasing 18 kilograms of methamphetamine at a time for redistribution.  In total, law enforcement seized nearly five kilograms of methamphetamine from Quinney and over $80,000.00 in U.S. currency.  

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.  HSTF Houston comprises agents and officers from the FBI; U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations - Houston (ICE-HSI); Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI); and U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) Eastern District of Texas; Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office; Beaumont Police Department; Orange Police Department; Orange County Sheriff’s Office; Texas Department of Public Safety; Lumberton Police Department; and Galveston County Sheriff’s Office with the prosecution being led by Eastern District of Texas Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan C. Lee.