On September 13, 2024, Cody Andrew Seals, 27, from Luttrell, Tennessee, was sentenced to 30 years in prison by United States District Judge Katherine A. Crytzer in the Eastern District of Tennessee at Knoxville.
Seals had pleaded guilty on April 16, 2024, to charges including conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine, discharging a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and the attempted murder of two Tennessee Highway Patrol Troopers. The plea agreement was filed under 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(b)(1)(A), 18 U.S.C. § 924(c), and 18 U.S.C. § 1114.
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Court documents revealed that federal law enforcement and task force officers were investigating a Mexican drug trafficking cartel distributing large quantities of methamphetamine in the Eastern District of Tennessee. On January 9, 2020, Seals was observed by law enforcement driving to a hotel to buy substantial amounts of methamphetamine and heroin. When law enforcement, with assistance from the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP), attempted to stop Seals on Highway 27 north of Chattanooga, Tennessee, Seals fled at high speed and fired a handgun at the pursuing officers. The chase ended with Seals stopping on the highway and firing a rifle at the officers, injuring one trooper. The troopers returned fire, injuring Seals, who was then arrested. A search of his truck uncovered 1.4 kilograms of methamphetamine, 500 grams of heroin, and multiple firearms.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Francis M. Hamilton III and Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Rana Saoud.
The investigation involved multiple law enforcement agencies, including Homeland Security Investigations, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Tennessee’s 9th Judicial District Drug Task Force, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Georgia State Patrol, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Quencer represented the United States in this case, which was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF aims to dismantle high-level drug traffickers and criminal organizations using a collaborative, multi-agency approach.
Source: Read Original Release
Chattanooga Man Sentenced for Fraudulent Acts
Karl Hampton, a 65-year-old from Chattanooga, Tennessee, was sentenced to 60 months in prison for defrauding an elderly widow with dementia of over $1.2 million.