Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

Jackson, Miss. – Shawn Louis Romero, 47 of Lafayette, Louisiana, was sentenced yesterday by Chief U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III, to 180 months in federal prison and 5 years of supervised release for conspiring to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and Special Agent in Charge Brad L. Byerley with the Drug Enforcement Administration. Romero was also ordered to pay a $1,500 fine.

In November 2017, during an extensive investigation targeting illegal methamphetamine distribution in central Mississippi, DEA agents learned that Romero was transporting large amounts of methamphetamine to the Jackson area. On November 20, 2017, federal agents and local law enforcement set up surveillance to intercept a suspected drug transaction involving Romero. Romero was pulled over while traveling on Interstate 20. Officers searched his vehicle and found approximately 5 pounds of methamphetamine with a purity level of 98%.

Romero was charged in a superseding indictment on September 10, 2019 and pled guilty before Judge Jordan on March 5, 2020.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Marshals Service, Hinds County Sheriff’s Office, Jones County Sheriff’s Office, Jackson Police Department, Richland Police Department, Warren County Sheriff’s Office, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the Internal Revenue Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Chris Wansley and Keesha Middleton.

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