UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
GRETCHEN C.F. SHAPPERT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THURSDAY, JANUARY 31, 2008

CONTACT: SUELLEN PIERCE
704.338.3120
FAX 704.227.0264

ASHEVILLE AREA DRUG DEFENDANT CONVICTED BY FEDERAL JURY AND SENTENCED IN U.S. DISTRICT COURT Federal Defendant Sentenced to 22 Years in Federal Prison on Drug and Federal Firearms Convictions ASHEVILLE, NC - Reginald Dewayne Jeffries, 28, of Asheville, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Asheville on Monday, January 28, 2008 to 22 years in federal prison. A federal jury in the Western District of North Carolina, Asheville Division, convicted Jeffries on one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and two counts alleging violations of the federal firearms statutes following a trial held in Asheville in September 2007. Jeffries was convicted as charged. U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert made the announcement of Jeffries’ sentencing by U.S. District Judge Lacy Thornburg.

Joining U.S. Attorney Shappert in making today’s announcement are Chief William Hogan of the Asheville Police Department and Assistant Special Agent in Charge of DEA, John Emerson. The case was handled for the government by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jill W. Rose of the Asheville Office of the U.S. Attorney.

The federal indictment charging Reginald Dewayne Jeffries was filed in June 2007 in U.S. District Court. The charges represent the results of an investigation by the Asheville Police Department working in conjunction with the Asheville DEA Task Force. The indictment alleged that Jeffries had in March 2007 in Buncombe County possessed with intent to distribute at least 25 grams of cocaine.

Jeffries was also charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, and with possession of a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, both violations of the federal firearms laws. Law enforcement officers who testified at Jeffries’ trial described Jeffries as being a continuing problem within the Housing Authority complexes in Asheville from which Jeffries had been banned by order of the Housing Authority. According to trial testimony and official court documents, Jeffries had been convicted in January of 2001 for possession with intent to manufacture controlled substances in Buncombe County Superior Court, a felony, and was later found in possession of a Smith and Wesson 9 mm semi-automatic handgun on March 27, 2007 in Buncombe County, in violation of federal law.

United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert commended the work of the Asheville Police Department for their leadership in the investigation, which led to the filing of federal charges. Reginald Dewayne Jefferies has been in federal custody since July 2007 on the charges contained in the indictment. Federal sentences are served without possibility of parole.