Columbia Man Theodore Fulton Sentenced in OxyContin Trafficking Ring

Theodore Fulton, 61, of Columbia, South Carolina, is headed to federal prison for 110 months after being sentenced for running a sprawling OxyContin trafficking operation that flooded the city with over 31,000 pills between 2008 and 2014. Fulton, identified as the ringleader, orchestrated a scheme that corrupted the medical system and turned pain clinics into black-market pill mills.

Acting United States Attorney Beth Drake confirmed the sentence handed down by U.S. District Judge J. Michelle Childs in Columbia federal court. In addition to prison time, Fulton was ordered to forfeit a luxury home valued at more than $400,000 and two high-end Lexus automobiles—all purchased with cash from his illicit drug profits. The assets underscore the financial reach of his criminal enterprise.

Court evidence revealed Fulton’s methodical operation: he recruited co-conspirators to pose as patients, visit a cooperating physician, fake chronic pain symptoms, and obtain legitimate Oxycodone prescriptions. Once the pills were dispensed, Fulton bought them at a discount and resold them on the street for massive markups—using another conspirator’s residence as a distribution hub.

Two of Fulton’s key associates have already faced justice. Daryal Hipp, 60, and Calvin Sims, 55, both of Columbia, were convicted after a December 2015 trial. Hipp received a 50-month sentence; Sims is awaiting sentencing. Their cooperation and the trial findings peeled back layers of the conspiracy, exposing the network’s reliance on fraud, deception, and addiction.

This case mirrors a broader epidemic of prescription drug abuse in South Carolina, where pill mills and doctor shopping once ran rampant. Fulton’s 110-month sentence matches that of another co-conspirator, John Kennedy, 52, who was previously sentenced to the same term for his role in the same trafficking ring—sending a hard message from federal prosecutors.

The investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with prosecution handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Winston Holliday and Ben Garner from the Columbia office. Holliday can be reached at (803) 929-3000 for further details. The case stands as a stark reminder that fueling the opioid crisis comes with steep consequences.