Harold Barbee, Cocaine Distribution, Arkansas 2015

North Little Rock, AR - In a major crackdown on cocaine trafficking, 11 defendants were arrested and charged with federal drug and firearms offenses in North Little Rock's Dixie Addition neighborhood.

The arrests resulted from an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation, Operation Dixie Days, which was carried out jointly with the FBI and North Little Rock Police Department (NLRPD) Narcotics Unit.

During the course of the investigation in 2014 and 2015, law enforcement utilized three Title III court-authorized wiretaps, intercepting hundreds of drug-trafficking calls. Law enforcement agents conducted controlled buys totaling almost one kilogram (2.2 pounds) of crack cocaine.

On December 2, 2015, the Grand Jury returned the indictments, which were unsealed today following a coordinated roundup of the charged defendants.

Agents also executed a search warrant today at 924 E Street in the Dixie Addition, where they recovered some of the crack cocaine and cash. Based on the investigation, it is alleged that during 2014 and 2015, Harold Barbee, Byron Leavy, Yvette Foster, and others utilized 924 E Street as a “trap house,” meaning a location for storing and selling cocaine and crack cocaine.

The counts in today’s unsealed indictments include conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, as well as various charges related to firearms offenses. The defendants arrested today will appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joe J. Volpe on December 9, 2015, at 3:00 p.m. for plea and arraignment.

Most of the defendants are residents of North Little Rock, and the investigation was carried out in conjunction with the FBI and NLRPD. The investigation also seized several ounces of crack cocaine, two stolen firearms, and more than $10,000 in cash.

“The Dixie Addition area of North Little Rock is filled with hard-working, law-abiding citizens; unfortunately, crack cocaine and drugs have plagued this area for a long time,” said Christopher R. Thyer, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edar/pr/eleven-defendants-facing-federal-drug-and-firearms-charges-north-little-rock