Operation High Life nets 36th arrest

Operation High Life nets 36th arrest

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Authorities have now brought in 36 of the 38 people targeted by a sweeping multi-agency, year-and-a-half-long drug investigation in Neshoba County following an arrest in Flowood last Monday.

 

John Netherland, 55, of 13070 Highway 488, Philadelphia, was arrested and charged with four felony counts of conspiracy to commit a crime. He has been denied bond and remains in the Neshoba County Detention Center.

 

Sheriff Eric Clark said that Netherland was pulled over by Flowood police on the evening of Monday, June 7, when they realized he was wanted in Neshoba County. Flowood police then contacted the Neshoba County Sheriff’s office and agreed to meet deputies in Leake County to hand over custody of Netherland that night.

 

Jail records show Netherland was brought into the NCDC just before midnight. Clark said that Netherland does not face any charges in Flowood.

 

The multi-agency investigation, dubbed Operation High Life, was led by Homeland Security Investigations New Orleans.

 

The two suspects who remain at large are Caleb Smith and Timothy Stewart.

 

More than 27 people were arrested on Friday, May 14. The arrests were led by the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, the Neshoba County Sheriff’s office, the Philadelphia Police Department, the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Neshoba County District Attorney and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians as well as others following a multi-year investigation in collaboration with Homeland Security Investigations New Orleans.

 

“The arrest culminating Operation High Life is a definitive example of the coalesced commitment among local, state and federal law enforcement to ensure public safety for all Mississippians,” said Col. Steven A. Maxwell, director of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics. “However, the seizure of fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana is a clear indicator of how pervasive the drug culture is throughout our communities. These drugs were attributed to the loss of more than 500 Mississippians in 2020.”

 

Clark said Operation High Life has taken more than $5 million in illegal drugs off the streets of Neshoba County.

 

Previously, the ongoing investigation had resulted in 38 state and federal convictions and the seizure of 85 pounds of methamphetamine with a street value of $3.5 million, 5 kilograms of cocaine worth about $500,000, 270 pounds of marijuana worth $1 million, 300 dosage units of fentanyl worth about $6,000 and 16 firearms.

 

It is the result of ongoing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force efforts statewide.

 

The investigation included Homeland Security Investigations of Jackson, the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, Drug Enforcement Agency, Neshoba County District Attorney and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians as well as others.

 

The investigation’s most recent conviction occurred Wednesday, May 12, with the sentencing of Landon Marquale Dupree, 35, of Philadelphia, who was charged with and pleaded guilty in the Southern District of Mississippi to selling methamphetamine to an individual on July 15, 2019. Dupree was sentenced to serve 189 months in federal prison, followed by eight years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $4,595 in restitution to the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics.






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