A Pascagoula man has been sentenced to serve over 22 years in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
Court records show that agents began investigating 46-year-old Willie Ray Washington III in September 2021 for distributing numerous illegal substances including fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine.
Investigators believed that Washington was selling the drugs from an automotive shop located in Moss Point that was previously leased by a large-scale distributor of methamphetamine.
At the time of the investigation, the previous owner was no longer distributing narcotics at that location because he had been arrested by Drug Enforcement Agency agents in an unrelated case.
Between April 2022 and May 2022, agents received new information that drugs were again being distributed at the same location.
Officers executed a search warrant for the property on June 20, 2022, finding Washington standing by a billiards table with a large bag of a white powdery substance in his hand.
During the search of the business, agents located the following substances:
- 786 grams of methamphetamine
- 223 grams of heroin
- 172 grams of fentanyl
- 64 grams of cocaine hydrochloride
- 30 grams of cocaine base
- Other smaller quantities of suspected narcotics
Additionally, agents located multiple ledgers on binders indicating a substantial history of narcotics distribution, along with digital scales and other paraphernalia used to package and distribute the illegal substances.
Washington was arrested and indicted by a federal grand jury on July 6, 2022. He pled guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl on April 11, 2023.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team.
