Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – On August 7, 2018, Bradley Gene Romero, 32, of Newport, Tennessee, was sentenced by the Honorable R. Leon Jordan, U.S. District Judge, to serve 228 months in federal prison for his role in a significant methamphetamine (meth) conspiracy and for possessing a firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking.   

According to the plea agreement on file with the U.S. District Court, Romero admitted that he was responsible for conspiring to distribute at least 500 grams, but less than 1.5 kilograms, of meth.  He was arrested in September 2017 at a motel in White Pine, Tennessee, with co-defendant Amanda Cureton, 34, of Newport, Tennessee, after a search of the room uncovered a quantity of meth and a firearm.  An additional quantity of meth was found hidden within the person of Romero after his arrival at the jail. 

A search warrant was obtained and executed on the contents of Romero’s cell phone. Three clear photographs of Romero holding a firearm were found as well as a photo of Romero holding up a large amount of cash.  Three other photographs show varying quantities of meth in Romero’s hands.  One other photograph showed meth in various stages of the distribution process. 

Others who were previously sentenced in this meth trafficking conspiracy include Randall James Stephens, 34, of Cosby, Tennessee, who was sentenced to 100 months; Christopher Justin Mixon, 33, of Parrottsville, Tennessee, who was sentenced to 110 months; Larry Michael Allison, 37, of Newport, Tennessee, who was sentenced to 98 months; and Taylor Denee Gudger, 24, of Newport, Tennessee, who was sentenced to 168 months.  Cureton’s sentencing hearing is set in September 2018. 

Law enforcement agencies participating in the investigation included the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Hamblen County Sheriff’s Office, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, White Pine Police Department, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Tennessee National Guard Counter Drug Task Force, Fourth District Judicial Drug Task Force, Cocke County Sheriff’s Office and the Newport Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Taylor represented the United States.

This case was a result of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s drug supply reduction strategy. OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multi-level attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply.                 

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