Dana Diane Shay, a 37-year-old resident of Fountain Valley, California, has been sentenced to 17 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. The sentencing took place in Greenville, South Carolina.
According to evidence presented in court, Shay delivered narcotics as part of a drug trafficking operation that extended into South Carolina. On November 25, 2020, she delivered 29 pounds of methamphetamine in Charlotte, North Carolina. She made another delivery on December 7, 2020, consisting of 50 pounds of methamphetamine and 45 pounds of marijuana in the same city.
Shay was arrested on federal drug trafficking charges in December 2020 and arraigned in Greenville. She was placed on bond but removed her ankle monitor and became a fugitive in August 2021. Shay remained at large until August 2024 when she was apprehended out of state and returned to South Carolina to face charges. Her sentence was increased due to her period as a fugitive.
United States District Judge Donald C. Coggins sentenced Shay to 204 months (17 years) imprisonment with an additional five-year term of supervised release following her prison term. The court also issued a $300,000 money judgment against her.
The prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF targets high-level drug traffickers and criminal organizations through collaboration among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies using an intelligence-driven approach. More information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Multiple agencies participated in investigating this case: Homeland Security Investigations Border Enforcement Security Task Force; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office; Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office; Greenville County Sheriff’s Office; Greenville Police Department; Greenville County Multi-Jurisdictional Drug Enforcement Unit; South Carolina Department of Corrections Office of Inspector General; and Anderson County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Schoen prosecuted the case.
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