Georgia man sentenced to 15 years for meth trafficking linked to Mexican cartel

ALBANY, Ga. - A Warwick man who admitted to dealing large quantities of methamphetamine on behalf of a Mexican drug cartel during the COVID-19 pandemic has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison.

Justin Harris Vinson, 42, was sentenced Tuesday to 180 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia. Vinson pleaded guilty on Sept. 17, 2024, to one count of methamphetamine distribution. There is no parole in the federal system.

Prosecutors said Vinson told investigators he had been selling meth "his entire life," and at the height of the pandemic in 2020, he distributed up to three kilograms per week across South Georgia and North Florida on behalf of the cartel.

His co-defendant, Shana Rae Black, 34, of Cordele, was sentenced on Feb. 28 to 168 months in prison after pleading guilty to the same charge.

The backstory:

The investigation involved multiple undercover drug buys and surveillance operations carried out by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the FBI, with support from local law enforcement.

On Oct. 27, 2022, a confidential informant working with the Crisp County Sheriff’s Office purchased methamphetamine from Black at a Perry motel, where a pistol was reportedly seen on a nightstand next to drugs. Four days later, a GBI agent posing as a buyer met Black at a Walmart in Cordele and purchased meth under audio and video surveillance.

Agents later observed Vinson act as a broker during a Nov. 2 drug deal, where Black delivered 284.4 grams of meth at a Cordele motel. Vinson kept $300 from the transaction and was seen with a firearm.

Black was arrested on Nov. 7 while returning from McDonough, Georgia. Investigators found nearly a kilogram of 97% pure methamphetamine, a smaller amount of 91% pure meth, a digital scale, and multiple phones in her vehicle. A subsequent search of her motel room revealed another firearm, suspected meth, scales, and packaging materials.

In January 2023, Vinson sold 277 grams of meth to a confidential informant and was again seen with a firearm. A search of his Warwick home days later uncovered six firearms, including one in an open bedroom safe.

Vinson and Black both have prior felony drug convictions in Georgia.

What they're saying:

"Repeat convicted felons who weaponize themselves and distribute hazardous, illegal drugs in our communities will be brought to justice," said Acting U.S. Attorney C. Shanelle Booker. "Alongside our law enforcement partners, our office is working nonstop to identify those offenders causing the most harm."

"This prosecution closes a pipeline for dangerous drugs flowing into the streets of Southwest Georgia," said Paul Brown, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Atlanta office.