Armed Cocaine Trafficker Sentenced to More Than 12½ Years

RALEIGH, N.C. – A Shallotte man was sentenced today to 151 months in prison and three years of supervised release for trafficking cocaine and possessing a firearm after a felony conviction.

On March 1, 2021, Dev Vontrai Bland pleaded guilty to Distribution of a Quantity of Cocaine (Count One) and Possession of a Firearm by a Felon (Count Five).

According to court documents and other information presented in court, Bland, 29, sold cocaine to a confidential informant on several dates from August 1, 2019 to September 26, 2019.

Bland was arrested on November 14, 2019. Agents then executed a search warrant at Bland’s residence and seized cocaine base (crack); marijuana; methamphetamine; drug packaging materials; currency; and a loaded 9mm handgun.

Due to Bland’s criminal history, he was determined to be a Career Offender.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Lemmon  prosecuted the case.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 7:20-CR-82-D-1.