Deondre Montreal Russell, Cocaine and Crack Possession, North Carolina 2022

A notorious Crips gang member from Selma, North Carolina, has been sentenced to 360 months in prison for his role in distributing and possessing significant quantities of cocaine and crack.

Deondre Montreal Russell, 34, also known as ‘Poo Bear,’ was convicted by a federal jury on July 19, 2022, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a quantity of cocaine and 28 grams or more of cocaine base (‘crack’).

According to court documents, Russell sold cocaine and crack to a confidential informant utilized by the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office in January 2020. Following the meeting, Russell committed a traffic violation, leading to his arrest and subsequent discovery of 26.51 grams of cocaine base (‘crack’), 27.62 grams of cocaine, and $650 in cash.

The investigation revealed that Russell had been selling significant quantities of controlled substances, including approximately 3,628.8 grams of crystal methamphetamine and 453.7 grams of cocaine base (‘crack’), to a confidential informant over an eight-to-nine-month period.

In October 2020, when Russell was on state probation, officers federally arrested him and found a digital scale with apparent cocaine residue, as well as 10 grams of marijuana. Following the arrest, additional confidential informants confirmed drug purchases from Russell and revealed that he made credible threats to use violence against witnesses in his trial.

Russell’s extensive criminal history includes a guilty plea to second-degree murder in 2005, for which he was released from prison in 2016. After his release, he was convicted of possession of cocaine and other controlled substances, as well as selling marijuana in 2018.

U.S. Attorney Michael Easley announced the sentencing, which was handed down by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly L. Sandling prosecuted the case.

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. 5:20-cr-00459-D.

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