Southwest Georgia men convicted of drug charges
Cairo, Fitzgerald men tried in U.S. Middle District of Georgia court
File Photo
From Staff Reports
ALBANY — United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia Charles Peeler has announced the outcome of drug-related cases against two southwest Georgia men.
Lakevis Woodard of Fitzgerald pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine and faces a 20-year prison term and a fine of up to $1 million or both, while Terrance “Tank” Williams of Cairo was sentenced to 57 months in prison for distribution of cocaine.
Woodard, 31, stood trial before U.S. District Court Judge Leslie Abrams in Albany, while Williams, 42, was sentenced by senior U.S. District Court Judge W. Louis Sands.
In his guilty plea, Woodard admitted that on Oct. 19, 2017, during an authorized road block, a trained narcotics dog alerted law enforcement to the presence of narcotics in his vehicle. In the initial search of Woodard’s vehicle, agents found a .45-caliber Ruger semi-automatic pistol under the driver’s seat.
In a subsequent search of Woodard’s residence, officers located a gallon-size ziplock bag of marijuana and a box containing powder cocaine, crack cocaine and a set of digital scales. GBI lab results showed the presence of 22.625 grams of cocaine base.
When officers stopped Woodard, they were aware that he was on active probation as a result of a Georgia First Offender sentence. They also had received information that he was selling drugs in the area.
“Our office will continue to work with our state and local law enforcement partners to identify, arrest and prosecute drug dealers throughout the Middle District of Georgia,” Peeler said in a statement. “I want to thank the Ben Hill County Sheriff’s Office and Georgia Department of Community Supervision for their excellent work in this matter.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Leah McEwen prosecuted the case.
In 2016, agents utilized a confidential informant who was able to make controlled purchases of crack cocaine from Williams at the defendant’s residence in Cairo. The suspected cocaine was submitted for laboratory analysis, where it tested positive as cocaine base with separate weights of 3.95, 8.8 and 20.89 grams.
The case against Williams was investigated by the Bainbridge Department of Public Safety and the Cairo Police Department. McEwen also prosecuted the case for the U.S.
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