A Peoria man was sentenced to 200 months in prison on April 26, 2023, for each of the four counts related to Methamphetamine Trafficking followed by eight years of Supervised Release, the sentences will run concurrently. Demetrice L. Sharp, 39, plead guilty in October of 2022 to Conspiracy to Distribute 50 grams or more of Methamphetamine, two counts of Distribution of 50 grams or more of Meth and Possession with Intent to Distribute 450 grams or more of Meth.
The Government said that Sharp and Lashonda Patterson conspired to distribute meth and sold meth on two occasions in April of 2022, 55.85 grams in the first sale by Sharp and 112.7 grams for the second sale by Patterson, both were 100% meth. The Federal Bureau of Investigations secured a search warrant in June of 2022 for the apartment Sharp and Patterson shared and found a bag containing 298.6 grams of 97% pure meth in the bedroom. The total amount of methamphetamine recovered was 467.15 grams.
Sharp and Patterson were arrested and indicted in June. Sharp pleaded guilty in October 2022 and has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest. Patterson also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, and she will be sentenced at a later date.
The possible sentence for each of the four counts is 10 years to life imprisonment, followed by five-year to life term of supervised release.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Field Office, and Western Illinois Transnational Organized Crime Task Force investigated the case, with assistance from the Peoria Police Department, Monmouth Police Department, Knox County Sheriff’s Office, Galesburg Police Department, East Moline Police Department, Illinois State Police, and U.S. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Keith Hollingshead-Cook represented the United States in the prosecution.
