Rock Hill Cartel-Connected Kingpin Sentenced to 25 Years in Federal Prison for Trafficking Hundreds of Kilograms of Fentanyl, Cocaine (DOJ)

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Timothy Markee Gayton, 34, of Rock Hill, has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for his role in two drug trafficking schemes.

Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed in January 2018, Gayton operated industrial-scale clandestine drug labs in the Rock Hill area, where fentanyl was pressed into pills designed to look like prescription drugs. Gayton then supplied these fentanyl-laced pills to drug dealers in South Carolina.

In February 2018, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Gayton's residence and seized fentanyl, amphetamine, marijuana, four firearms, nine firearm magazines, 10,000 rounds of ammunition, and $23,000 in cash. He was arrested and released on bond, but seven days later, he sold a kilogram of fentanyl to a law enforcement source.

Between 2018 and 2022, Gayton imported pill presses, pill binder, and fentanyl powder from China and Mexico, set up clandestine laboratories in the York County area, and manufactured hundreds of thousands of illegal fentanyl pills. During the search of one of Gayton's one drug labs, agents found $53,000 in cash, handguns, 7 pill presses, 150,000 pills made to look like Roxicodone, 30 kilograms of fentanyl, pill stamps, pill binder, Narcan, a money counter, and a vacuum sealer. Gayton's identical twin brother, Timario Gayton, was convicted for his role in this drug lab and sentenced to 180 months.

During a search of Gayton's house the same day, agents found $4,000 in cash, 4 rifles, extended magazines, a kilogram press, packaging material with fentanyl inside, and fentanyl. Gayton also distributed hundreds of kilograms of cocaine during the course of the conspiracy.

In January 2023, a federal grand jury indicted Gayton for conspiracy to distribute fentanyl. While awaiting trial and in federal custody, Gayton arranged for the distribution of over a kilogram of fentanyl from jail on several occasions. He was again federally indicted for conspiracy and two counts of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. He also bribed a jail guard, who was charged and convicted for the conduct. Gayton was responsible for getting illegal drugs and contraband cell phones inside the jail, all while in federal custody.

"The expanse of Gayton's drug trafficking network was immense, from Rock Hill, across the nation, and over international borders to reach his cartel supply networks. Gayton is now closed for business and will assume a new residence within the highly secure confines of the United States Bureau of Prisons for the next 25 years, with no parole," said U.S Attorney Bryan P. Stirling for the District of South Carolina. "This investigation and prosecution is yet another example of how responsive and effective our local, state, and federal law enforcement partnerships remain in South Carolina. Specifically, I would like to thank the Rock Hill Police Department, the York County Sheriff's Office, the Clarendon County Sheriff's Office, the Richland County Sheriff's Department, the City of Columbia Police Department, the Lexington County Sheriff's Department, as well the DEA, FBI, ATF, and the U.S. Marshals Office."

This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.

United States District Judge Sherri A. Lydon sentenced Gayton to 300 months imprisonment, to be followed by a 5-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), U.S. Marshals Service, the York County Multijurisdictional Drug Enforcement Unit (YCMDEU), the Rock Hill Police Department, the Clarendon County Sheriff's Office, the Richland County Sheriff's Department, the City of Columbia Police Department, and the Lexington County Sheriff's Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elliott B. Daniels and Elizabeth Major prosecuted the case.