Charlottesville resident Reynold Samuels Jr., 40, was sentenced yesterday to 24 years and four months in federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute controlled substances and one count of copyright infringement.
According to U.S. Attorney spokesperson Brian McGinn, Samuels was selling bootleg DVDs out of a storefront on the Charlottesville Downtown Mall and “admitted that he was the supervisor of a distribution organization that distributed over 3,000 kilograms of marijuana.”
Charlottesville Police Lieut. Don Campbell said Samuels had been investigated for three to four years before he was indicted in February 2008 for conspiracy, adding that Samuels was dealing cocaine as well as marijuana.
McGinn said several other members of Samuels’ organization have also been indicted, including Reynold Samuels’ brother, Carl Samuels, 37, who — along with Jevon Barnett, 22, Reginald Bly, 37, Joe Williams, 29, and Andre Williams — has been sentenced to at least 12 months in prison. Other co-conspirators Travis Barnett and Penny Miles — whose ages were not available as of press time — have both pled guilty but have not yet been sentenced.
McGinn added that it is unclear whether Jevon and Travis Barnett are related or whether Joe and Andre Williams are related, but the U.S. Attorney’s office is not calling it a family conspiracy.
McGinn and Campbell both said there has been no evidence to show that Samuels’ business had dealings with University students. McGinn added, however, that these arrests have removed a significant source of drugs from Charlottesville.
“This takes a substantial amount of marijuana off the streets of the city,” McGinn said.
—compiled by Kelly Morenus
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