INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis man was sentenced after hiding drugs in a storage unit while he was on house arrest, according to the Department of Justice.
Clifton Withers, 49, was sentenced to more than 15 years after pleading guilty to two counts of Possession with Intent to Distribute 40 Grams or More of Fentanyl and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a convicted felon.
"This defendant is a lifelong drug dealer who has failed to rehabilitate despite given numerous chances to do so. After receiving a Community Corrections sentence armed drug trafficking, he immediately returned to trafficking large quantities of fentanyl and illegally possessing a silencer and an arsenal of firearms," said Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana.
According to court documents, on Jan. 7, 2020, Withers was placed on home detention and monitoring by Marion County Community Corrections following a conviction for Dealing in a Narcotic Drug.
While serving his term, he rented two storage units in Indianapolis. On May 19, 2020, officers conducted a court-authorized search of the units and found the following:
- Clear plastic bag with three large discs of approximately 250 grams of fentanyl
- Multiple digital scales
- Bottle of lactose, which is a drug-cutting agent
- A large metal press
- Three handgun holsters
- A black bag containing several boxes of ammunition
- Nine firearms, which he is prohibited from owning as a convicted felon.
Officers also searched Wither's vehicle and discovered the following:
- Three plastic bags with 55 grams of fentanyl
- Metal press with heroin residue and an additional metal press
- Multiple digital scales.
During the search of his home, officials found:
- 9mm handgun
- firearm silencer
- three books on building military-grade firearm suppressors.
"Fentanyl poisoning takes lives and devastates families in all zip codes and walks of life. Traffickers pose even more danger to our communities when they are heavily armed. Thanks to the outstanding work of our partners at the ATF and our federal prosecutors, the defendant's career of armed drug trafficking has been halted for many years to come," said Myers.
Withers will also face five years of supervised release.