Five Myrtle Beach area men among those charged in national cocaine-trafficking scheme
Six people have been arrested and charged federally, accused of working in a drug trafficking ring that operated between several South Carolina cities and New York City.
U.S. Attorney for the district of South Carolina M. Rhett DeHart announced the charges Monday in a news release. The investigation from which the charges stemmed is led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), in collaboration with federal, state, and local law enforcement.
The drug trafficking organization targeted by the federal investigation operated out of Myrtle Beach, Conway, Florence and New York City, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The trafficking ring has brought in “large quantities” of cocaine and crack cocaine from New York into South Carolina.
This is the second round of charges that Operation New Optix — as the U.S. Attorney’s Office calls it — has yielded. In December, 26 people were charged federally in connection to the drug trafficking conspiracy.
This week’s leg of the operation — which has spanned several years — resulted in the seizure of more than $270,000, five cars, 11 firearms, more than 4.5 kilograms of suspected cocaine, and more than 450 grams of suspected crack cocaine, in addition to suspected fentanyl, heroin, marijuana, and other drugs.
The six people who were arrested this week are as follows:
Jovan Steven Graves, 34, of Brooklyn, New York. Graves is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine.
Sean Lewis Adams, 39, of Longs. Adams is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine.
Arthur Lee Busbee Jr., 39, of Conway. Busbee is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
Deondray Azell Stanfield, 43, of Myrtle Beach. Stanfield is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
Brodus Bernard Gregg, 68, of Conway. Gregg is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
Davon Chadmar Bease, 37, of Conway. Bease is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
Twenty-two people who were charged in an earlier phase of the investigation pleaded guilty to similar charges, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
“As this office has made clear time and again, violent criminals will find no safe harbor in South Carolina,” said Acting U.S. Attorney DeHart in the press release. “Because of the work of our federal, state, and local partners, we have obtained more than 100 convictions and been able to dismantle violent gangs across the Pee Dee Region.”
This story was originally published July 26, 2021 at 3:04 PM with the headline "Five Myrtle Beach area men among those charged in national cocaine-trafficking scheme."
