Brian Carroll, Meth Conspiracy Tied to Officer’s Murder, Virginia 2022

ABINGDON, Va. – The final defendant who participated in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine tied to the murder of Big Stone Gap, Virginia Police Officer Michael Chandler, was sentenced this week in federal court.

Brian Carroll, 43, of Big Stone Gap, Virginia, was sentenced yesterday to 108 months. The sentencing comes after a string of convictions of his co-conspirators, who were sentenced to a total of 2,191 months in prison.

Officer Chandler, a 20-year veteran of the Big Stone Gap Police Department, was shot and killed on November 13, 2021, while responding to a welfare check call at 2505 Orr Street in Big Stone Gap. The murder was linked to a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking operation that brought in over 15 kilograms of the deadly drug from Tennessee and other states.

Michael White, the man who gunned down Officer Chandler, was sentenced to 100 years in prison for his role in the murder. White’s sentencing was a result of a joint investigation by multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Virginia State Police, and the Wise County Sheriff’s Office.

A total of 19 defendants were charged and convicted of conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, with sentences ranging from 24 months to 235 months in prison. The conspiracy, which began in August 2021, involved the transportation of methamphetamine from Tennessee and other states into southwest Virginia, where it was distributed throughout Wise County.

Acting United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee and Anthony A. Spotswood, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, made the announcement.

The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Virginia State Police, the United States Marshal’s Service, the Wise County Sheriff’s Office, the City of Norton Virginia Police Department, the Kingsport Tennessee Police Department, the Big Stone Gap Police Department, the Wise County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, the East Tennessee Drug Task Force, and the Southwest Virginia Drug Task Force.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lena L. Busscher and Danielle Stone are prosecuting the case.

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