Illegally Armed Meth Trafficker Is Sentenced To 27 Years

Asheville -- Western District North Carolina United States Attorney's Office Press Release December 2023:

Brandon Alan Purvis, 44, of Waynesville, N.C., was sentenced to 27 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release for trafficking methamphetamine and illegal possession of a firearm, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

Robert J. Murphy, Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which oversees the Charlotte District Office, and Sheriff William Wilke of the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.

According to documents filed with the court, in October 2021, an investigation into Purvis’s drug trafficking activities was initiated, after law enforcement learned that the defendant was acquiring methamphetamine and redistributing it to others in and around Haywood County. On November 2, 2021, law enforcement conducting surveillance observed Purvis drive away from his residence in Waynesville. Shortly thereafter, Haywood County deputies attempted to pull over Purvis’s vehicle for a traffic violation. Purvis failed to stop and continued to speed away with the deputies in pursuit of the vehicle. As Purvis was driving over a bridge, deputies observed Purvis toss a backpack from his passenger window into the river and he continued to speed away.

According to court records, Purvis eventually stopped his vehicle and was arrested at the scene. Haywood County officers recovered nearly $9,000 in cash, narcotics, and an air power rifle from Purvis and his vehicle. Law enforcement then located the backpack Purvis had tossed into the river and found more than 1.7 kilograms of methamphetamine at the bottom of the bag. Law enforcement also executed a search warrant at Purvis’s residence. During the search, law enforcement seized a loaded firearm and more than $17,000 in cash. Purvis has a lengthy criminal history and he is prohibited under federal law of possessing a firearm or ammunition. Court records also show that over the course of the investigation law enforcement determined that Purvis was responsible for trafficking over $2.5 kilograms of methamphetamine. 

On May 17, 2023, Purvis pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm by a felon. He is in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.

In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney King credited the investigative work of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office, which are part of an investigation led by the Western District’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). U.S. Attorney King also thanked the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office, the Swain County Sheriff’s Office, the Waynesville Police Department, the McDowell County Sheriff’s Office, the Canton Police Department, the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, the Maggie Valley Police Department, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for their investigative efforts in the broader OCDETF investigation.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles criminal organizations using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/ocdetf.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Hess with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville prosecuted the case.