RALEIGH — A Sampson man has been sentenced in federal court to 30 years in prison for his role in a regional drug trafficking organization rooted in Sampson County and extending across the Southeastern United States, deemed “one of significant” operations the court has ever seen.
Tony Chevallier, 40, who has listed addresses in Clinton and Turkey, was sentenced to 360 months in prison, to be followed by 10 years of federal supervised release. The sentencing was handed down by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. Robert J. Higdon Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, made the announcement of the sentencing in a press release Friday.
In October 2016, Chevallier and 24 other co-defendants were federally indicted and charged with a myriad of drug trafficking, firearm and financial crimes stemming from the drug trafficking organization. Chevallier was charged with conspiring to distribute and possession with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, the most severe drug charge one can receive at the federal level.
The investigation determined that Chevallier was ultimately accountable for the distribution of significant quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine and crack.
Of the 25 co-defendants named in the indictment, four entered pleas of not guilty and proceeded to a jury trial in May 2018. After nearly two weeks of evidence presentation that included multiple community witnesses, local and federal law enforcement testimony, forensic, financial and narcotic experts, testimony from co-defendants and other evidence, the jury found Chevallier and his co-defendants guilty of the crimes charged.
In addition to Chevallier, others convicted included Antonio Kevin McKoy, 32, of Garland, said to be the ringleader of the operation, and Jabarr Ryeheine Rudolph, 38, of Clinton. During the trial, the details of an operation distributing “significant quantities” of meth, heroin, cocaine and “molly,” known also as MDMA or ecstasy, were unwrapped. Gregory Antwan Bright, 33, of Turkey, was convicted in connection with the case in August.
“The investigation resulted in the conviction of 25 members of the McKoy drug trafficking organization that destroyed the quality of life in the small community of Garland in Sampson County,” a previous release from Higdon stated.
McKoy utilized dozens of individuals, including his uncle, James Daniel McKoy, 54, also of Garland, to build and sustain the DTO. According to investigators, a series of homes were used in southern Sampson to store, package and distribute cocaine, crack, heroin, meth and opioids over nearly a decade. James McKoy’s home was one of them.
The week after Antonio’s conviction, James McKoy was sentenced to at least 17 years in prison.
At his sentencing this week, Chevallier moved the court for leniency, arguing for a lesser sentence, contesting estimated drug quantities and his leadership. “The court ultimately agreed with the United States, relying upon the extensive criminal history built by Chevallier and the deluge of evidence implicating him in what was described as one of the most significant DTO’s the court has ever seen,” Higdon’s release stated.
The court cited the dozens of previous convictions ranging from violent crimes, property crimes and drug trafficking crimes when imposing the sentence. It was determined in this case that Chevallier trafficked large quantities of drugs throughout North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.
It was noted that Chevallier was released from prison in Georgia on Feb. 20, 2016 after being convicted of a felony cocaine trafficking charge in November 2013.
“Evidence gathered in this current case showed Chevallier returned immediately to large scale drug trafficking upon his release from custody until he was arrested federally in late 2016,” the release noted, citing court details.
The investigation relied on multiple agencies and offices at both the federal and state levels.
Initially, the investigation began with the Sampson County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Division (SID). As the scale of the DTO became clearer, other state and federal agencies joined the investigation, including sheriff’s offices in New Hanover and Onslow counties, Jacksonville Police Department, the N.C. Highway Patrol, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Ultimately, the investigation was primarily led by ATF, the Sampson County Sheriff’s SID, and the Sampson County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Interdiction Unit. The investigation utilized confidential informants, undercover officers, constant physical surveillance, wiretaps and a multitude of other investigative techniques.
This prosecution is part of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking. Authorities deemed it the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities toward halting criminal organizations and seizing their assets.
Assistant United States Attorneys Brad Knott and Toby Lathan prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.