Supplier of meth, heroin for North Carolina drug network sentenced to 30 years in prison
By Brittany Whitehead
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MURPHY, North Carolina (WLOS) — The supplier of a local drug network has been sentenced to 30 years in prison, announced William T. Stetzer, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
During his sentencing on Nov. 4, 2021, Matthew Wondra, 34, of Murphy, was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release after he is released from prison.
On Oct. 30, 2020, Wondra pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin. At the court hearing on Nov. 4, 2021, Wondra received sentencing enhancements for weapons possession, making a credible threat, maintaining a premises for the purpose of storing and distributing controlled substances and for his leadership role during the drug conspiracy.
According to court documents and Thursday’s sentencing hearing, in September 2018, law enforcement became aware that Wondra was operating as a supplier for a local drug network in Cherokee and Graham Counties and elsewhere. Court records show that Wondra frequently traveled to Georgia to purchase kilogram quantities of methamphetamine and heroin, which he then distributed to dealers in Western North Carolina.
Throughout the investigation, Wondra engaged in multiple drug transactions, sometimes also possessing firearms in connection with his drug trafficking activities. On one occasion, Wondra put a gun to the head of a person he accused of stealing drug proceeds from him during the course of the conspiracy and he threatened to kill that person.
According to filed documents, from September 2018 to August 2019, Wondra was responsible for purchasing and distributing more than 19 kilograms of methamphetamine and more than three kilograms of heroin.
Wondra’s co-defendants, Jamie Allen and Derek Wilson, were previously sentenced to 10 years and 4.25 years in prison, respectively, for their role in the conspiracy.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
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