(COLUMBIA, SC) - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced today that the South Carolina State Grand Jury has issued indictments of 39 people for their alleged participation in an Upstate drug trafficking conspiracy primarily involving heroin and methamphetamine but also other illegal narcotics.
These indictments followed a multi-jurisdictional investigation with cooperation among a number of law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies in the Upstate area.
These indictments arose from an investigation known as “Groundhog Day.”
The State Grand Jury returned seven indictments alleging multiple but connected charges and conspiracies relating to trafficking 28 grams or more of heroin and 400 grams or more of methamphetamine.
The investigation revealed that this organization allegedly trafficked large quantities of heroin, methamphetamine, and other illegal narcotics into the Upstate during the course of its operation, which allegedly began as early as March of 2018.
The Groundhog Day investigation to date has resulted in the seizure of over 54 pounds of methamphetamine, almost 5 pounds of heroin, about a half a pound of fentanyl, as well as cocaine, marijuana, psychedelic mushrooms, and various prescription pills.
Firearms, cash, and vehicles were also recovered by law enforcement.
Attorney General Wilson thanked all the investigative agencies involved for their hard work and cited this case as yet another example of cooperation among various agencies through the mechanism of the State Grand Jury.
“The State Grand Jury and the partnership between the Attorney General’s Office and federal, state and local agencies have proven to be effective in addressing multi-county drug trafficking,” Wilson said. "The Attorney General's Office and all of the agencies involved are committed to fighting the trafficking of drugs such as methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl to the citizens of our State," he added.
Bond hearings were held on November 4, 2019, and July 15, 2020, before the Honorable DeAndrea Benjamin in Richland County.
Bond was denied for Marion Douglas Garnett, Jr. (a/k/a “Lil Bro”; “Bro”) and Jonathan Blake Willingham.
The remaining defendants received various surety and personal recognizance bonds.
William Dexter Harman is still a fugitive. Anyone with information as to his whereabouts should contact the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division or Crimestoppers.
This State Grand Jury case was investigated with a partnership of the Attorney General’s State Grand Jury Division, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office, the 7th Circuit Solicitor’s Office, the South Carolina Department of Corrections, the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office, the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office, the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, the United States Marshals Service, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. The cases will be prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General David Fernandez, Senior Assistant Attorney General Joshua Underwood, Assistant Attorney General John Conrad, and State Grand Jury Division Chief Attorney Creighton Waters.
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Attorney General Wilson stressed that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.