Robeson County man sentenced to 21 years for trafficking drugs from Mexico

ROBESON COUNTY, N.C. (WBTW) — A Robeson County man was sentenced Tuesday to 21 years in prison for trafficking drugs from Mexico, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Jeremiah Eli Lowery, of Maxton, pleaded guilty Dec. 8 2021 to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin, and possession of methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin with intent to distribute, according to the release.

Lowery was sentenced for his role in a conspiracy responsible for bringing kilograms of meth, cocaine, and heroin from Mexico to Robeson County, according to the news release.

“Deputies caught this drug trafficker bringing kilos of dope from Mexico to North Carolina,” U.S. Attorney Michael Easley said in the release. “Now he faces the consequences of his repeated and persistent participation in the international drug trade.”

Lowery was identified as a primary point of contact for a group trafficking the drugs from Mexico through legal ports of entry in the Brownsville, Texas, area, according to the release.

Lowery would travel to Texas, cross the border and then transport drugs back across the border and into Robeson County to be sold, according to investigators.

Lowery was pulled over in a rental vehicle Oct. 14, 2022 by the Robeson County Sheriff’s Office with two other people as they were returning from Texas, according to the release. Investigators found 2.3 kilograms of meth, 2.98 kilograms of cocaine, 997.7 grams of heroin and more than $58,000 in the spare tire.

Investigators began receiving information in the spring of 2021 that Lowery had resumed making trips to Mexico to pick up drugs from the same supplier, according to the release. Lowery was then stopped at the border in Brownsville and was found with 2.8 kilograms of cocaine and 1.8 kilograms of meth in the spare tire.

“[This] sentence should serve as a deterrent to others pushing drugs in our communities,” Easley said. “We will investigate and prosecute you.”