United States Drug Enforcement Administration

SHREVEPORT, La. - A man from California was sentenced Wednesday to 12 years in prison for conspiring to transport methamphetamine, announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Assistant Special Agent in Charge Brad L. Byerley and Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook. 

Maquel L. Shelby, 37, of Hawthorne, Calif., was sentenced by a U.S. District Judge on one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the August 30, 2017 guilty plea, a Louisiana State trooper conducted a traffic stop on a Dodge Durango Shelby was driving January 31, 2017 on Interstate 20 in Bossier Parish. Codefendant Bryanna Warren, 27, also of California, was riding in the car along with two children, ages 5 and 2. After being questioned, Shelby admitted there was a pistol in the vehicle’s glove compartment. As the trooper walked over to the vehicle to speak to Warren who was seated in the front passenger seat, she pulled out a loaded S&W .40 caliber pistol from a diaper bag and handed it to the trooper. She admitted to trying to hide the firearm after taking it from the glove compartment. The vehicle was also searched, and troopers found 2 pounds of methamphetamine in a backpack. After the arrest, Shelby admitted he had picked up the methamphetamine from Shreveport and was instructed to bring it to Monroe, La.

Warren pleaded guilty on May 25, 2017 to one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and was sentenced on October 19, 2017 to five years in prison and three years of supervised release.

The DEA and Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation.

Parents and children are encouraged to educate themselves about the dangers of drugs by visiting DEA’s interactive websites at www.JustThinkTwice.com, www.GetSmartAboutDrugs.com and www.dea.gov.