Columbia Man Sentenced to Over 12 Years in Federal Prison for Guns and Drugs

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Christopher Kentrell Jones, 33, of Columbia, has been sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison for distribution of cocaine and possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking offense.

Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed that agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted four controlled purchases of cocaine and two controlled purchases of firearms from Jones at a residence on Colleton St. in Columbia. During one of the purchases, Jones sold both a firearm and approximately one ounce of cocaine in a single transaction. A grand jury indicted Jones for charges related to the controlled purchase, and when members of the ATF and the Richland County Sheriff's Department arrested Jones on that indictment, he was found in possession of 125 oxycodone pills and approximately 1 ounce of crack cocaine.

While Jones was in custody on his federal charges, he used phone calls and messages to recruit a coconspirator to continue to traffic cocaine, crack cocaine, oxycodone, and marijuana on his behalf from his residence in Columbia. ATF executed a search warrant on Jones' residence and found approximately 1 ounce of crack cocaine, 5 ounces of cocaine, 22 ounces of marijuana, and five firearms.

Jones has prior convictions for possession of crack cocaine and possession with intent to distribute cocaine.

United States District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr. sentenced Christopher Jones to 148 months imprisonment, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Richland County Sheriff's Department, and the City of Columbia Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lamar J. Fyall is prosecuting the case.

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