How a Georgia prison inmate ordered fentanyl from China using illegal phones
Federal agents discovered over 175 metal pans used to soak paper in synthetic cannabinoids during a raid of a Cordele home on July 22, 2024. (U.S Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia)
ATLANTA - Federal officials sentenced 27-year-old Andreaus Benard Oliver Jr. on Thursday to 14 years in prison for his role in a drug ring that funneled fentanyl and synthetic cannabinoids from China into Southwest Georgia.
The Cordele man pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance following a multi-agency Homeland Security Task Force investigation.
Cordele drug bust investigation
What we know:
Federal agents executed a search warrant on July 22, 2024, at Oliver Jr.'s home on 4th Avenue in Cordele, which served as a lab. Investigators seized over 175 metal pans, measuring beakers, cash, ledgers, and 350 dried paper sheets soaked in synthetic cannabinoids.
What we don't know:
Authorities have not revealed the exact identities of all international buyers or whether additional arrests will be made in connection with the local supply chain.
Macon prison drug ring scheme
The backstory:
The drug trafficking operation began in 2023 while co-conspirator Devito Duran Young was an inmate at Macon State Prison in Oglethorpe. Young used contraband cellphones and encrypted chat apps to order fentanyl from China, paying with cryptocurrency and directing deliveries across Georgia.
What they're saying:
"Those who traffic fentanyl and other dangerous drugs from China into Southwest Georgia will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," U.S. Attorney William R. "Will" Keyes said.
Georgia federal court sentences
By the numbers:
Young received 327 months in prison, while Trace Davrin Works was sentenced to 262 months on July 8. Oliver Jr.'s father, Andreaus Benard Oliver Sr., was sentenced Sept. 2 to 210 months in prison for his involvement.
Federal agents discovered over 175 metal pans used to soak paper in synthetic cannabinoids during a raid of a Cordele home on July 22, 2024. (U.S Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia)
What's next:
Two Chinese nationals charged in a May 14, 2025, indictment, Xin Wang and Gao Yong, remain at large facing up to 40 years in prison. Federal agents also seized $170,000 in cryptocurrency from Wang as part of the ongoing effort to dismantle the network.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Georgia, who detailed the federal court sentencings and indictment details in an official news release, as well as statements from the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.