Lenoir Methamphetamine Trafficker Is Sentenced To 14 Years In Prison for Drug and Gun Offenses

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Larry Dewayne Colvin, Jr., 51, of Lenoir, N.C., was sentenced today to 168 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release on drug and gun offenses, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

Bennie Mims, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Charlotte Field Division, Robert Schurmeier, Director of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), Sheriff Alan C. Jones, of the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff Len Hagaman, of the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office, and Chief Brent Phelps of the Lenoir Police Department, join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.

According to court documents and court proceedings, on December 12, 2022, law enforcement received information that Colvin was trafficking methamphetamine in Lenoir and surrounding areas. During the investigation, law enforcement arranged controlled buys during which they observed Colvin sell methamphetamine to a Confidential Informant (CI). Court records show that on December 16, 2022, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Colvin’s residence in Lenoir, where they seized methamphetamine and a firearm. A second firearm, an ammunition magazine, drug trafficking paraphernalia, and more than $7,400 in cash drug proceeds were seized from a vehicle parked on the property.

According to court records, a second search warrant was executed at another location where Colvin was using a camper as a stash house for methamphetamine. From the camper, law enforcement seized more methamphetamine, five handguns, two rifles, and a shotgun. During an interview with Colvin, the defendant told law enforcement that he also hid methamphetamine at his workplace. Law enforcement traveled to Colvin’s workplace where they seized over 4.5 kilograms of methamphetamine, as well as $30,000 in cash drug proceeds from Colvin’s vehicle.

On January 8, 2023, law enforcement in Lenoir responded to a call about Colvin communicating threats to an individual. Law enforcement encountered Colvin at a gas station, where he admitted to having a firearm in the vehicle. Law enforcement retrieved the firearm along with $2,500 in cash drug proceeds.

On October 31, 2023, Colvin pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, distribution of methamphetamine, and possession of a firearm by a felon. He is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.

The ATF, the SBI, the Caldwell County Sherriff’s Office, the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office, and the Lenoir Police Department investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven R. Kaufman and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (SAUSA) William Wiseman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case.

Mr. Wiseman is a state prosecutor with the office of the 26^th Prosecutorial District and was assigned by District Attorney Spencer Merriweather to serve as a SAUSA with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte. Mr. Wiseman is sworn in both state and federal courts. The SAUSA position is a reflection of the partnership between the office of the 26^th Prosecutorial District and the United States Attorney’s Office. 

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.