Three men sentenced in Columbia, SC for meth distribution
February 9th, 2010 - 5:41 am ICT by BNO NewsCOLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA (BNO NEWS) – Three men responsible for distributing methamphetamine across the Pee Dee, South Carolina on Monday region were sentenced to federal prison, prosecutors said.
A U.S. District Judge sentenced David E. Watts, 49, to 30 years imprisonment, Flint D. Ratliff, 46, to 23 years imprisonment, and James B. Haithcock, 50, to eight years imprisonment. There is no parole in federal sentencing.
The three defendants were involved in the manufacturing of methamphetamine since 2002 in various areas of North and South Carolina. Additionally, they also are responsible for teaching at least ten other people how to make methamphetamine, and were responsible for many of the meth labs later seized by law enforcement in the Pee Dee Region since 2004.
Witnesses testified that the group and their co-conspirators made approximately 20 ounces of meth each month, stealing anhydrous ammonia tanks from business and farms throughout the Pee Dee region in order to produce the drug. Co-conspirators also testified that all three defendants often carried firearms.
The conviction is the result of an investigation by the Florence County Sheriff’s Office, DEA Task Force, the U.S. Marshals Service, and various other local and federal departments and agencies.
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