Christopher Neil McLean, Methamphetamine Trafficking, North Carolina 2021

RALEIGH, N.C. – A 47-year-old man from Elizabethtown, North Carolina has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for his role in a methamphetamine trafficking operation.

Christopher Neil McLean was sentenced on April 19, 2021 in Federal District Court in Raleigh on three counts related to the trafficking of methamphetamine. The charges include conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine and aiding and abetting, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

According to court documents, McLean and Paige Anderson traveled to Sanford, NC on May 30, 2020 to pick up a large amount of methamphetamine. They then returned to Bladen County for distribution. On June 1, 2020, law enforcement officers conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle driven by McLean with Anderson as the passenger. During the stop, officers found approximately 90 grams of methamphetamine, plastic baggies, glass pipes, digital scales, a firearm, and $1,189 in the vehicle.

McLean provided an unprotected statement after the stop, indicating that he had a lot of methamphetamine in his car. The firearm and holster were found in the center console area of the vehicle.

G. Norman Acker III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Bladen County Sheriff’s Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated the case, with Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Murphy Averitt prosecuting the case.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation and the Take Back North Carolina Initiative of The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina. The initiative focuses on reducing violent crime rates, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement in the region.

McLean’s sentence is the result of a thorough investigation and prosecution. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina will continue to work with law enforcement agencies to combat crime and keep communities safe.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 7:20-cr-00150-D.

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