Charleston, South Carolina --- United States Attorney Peter M. McCoy, Jr., announced today that Darnell Seagers, also known as “Bam Bam,” 30, of Charleston, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison after a jury convicted him of multiple counts of being a felon in possession of firearms, conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine, possession with intent to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine, and methamphetamine, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes.
“With this lengthy sentence, a violent criminal is off the streets, a drug trafficking organization has been hobbled, and the local community is safer,” said U.S. Attorney McCoy. “The Defendant’s conduct here was especially egregious. He continued his violence well after his arrest by using bribery, threats, and violence to try and derail his case. He was thwarted in these efforts and ultimately convicted thanks to the steadfast work of our federal, state, and local partners.”
“The successful results of this investigation highlight not only the criminal acts violent offenders like Darnell Seagers are willing to commit in furtherance of their drug trafficking organizations, but the relentless commitment of law enforcement to ensure these bad actors are brought to justice,” said Vincent C. Pallozzi, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) Charlotte Field Division. “ATF values its partnership with the Charleston Police Department and will continue to work vigorously with all of our law enforcement partners to protect the citizens of South Carolina.”
“We will continue the all-important work of strategic partnering with our law enforcement partners to better serve the citizens of Charleston,” said Charleston Police Chief Luther Reynolds. “Cooperation must be the focal point of our effort and cooperative investigation resources must be pooled in more and more cases. Through combined efforts, such as this, career criminals that prey upon our citizens are removed from society making our city safer.”
Evidence presented at the trial showed that Seagers was the leader of a drug trafficking organization operating out of multiple apartments in the Gadsden Green public housing facility in downtown Charleston. Over the course of six months beginning in May of 2018, agents from ATF and officers from the Charleston Police Department used a confidential informant to make and record drug transactions with Seagers and other members of the drug trafficking organization.
During this time, Seagers was arrested on an outstanding warrant for armed robbery by the United States Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force. When deputy marshals arrested Seagers at his wife’s home in Goose Creek, they discovered a loaded stolen handgun and thousands of dollars of cash. Evidence presented at trial showed that shortly after obtaining a bond from the state court on the armed robbery charge, Seagers went right back to selling drugs in Gadsden Green.
In October of 2018, ATF and the Charleston Police Department concluded their investigation and took down the drug trafficking organization. Agents and officers accompanied by a Charleston Police Department SWAT team arrested Seagers and executed a search warrant on the apartment where he was dealing drugs. Law enforcement officers discovered four firearms, a large quantity of crack cocaine, powder cocaine, marijuana, and pills containing methamphetamine. Four other members of the drug trafficking organization were also arrested and have plead guilty to various federal drug charges.
In the months leading up to his trial, Seagers attempted to interfere with the Government’s case in several ways. Evidence presented to the Court showed that Seagers attempted to bribe one of the Government’s key witnesses not to appear at trial, and Seagers threatened a member of the witness’s family. Additional testimony also showed that Seagers offered to pay a fellow inmate who was scheduled to be released on bond to kill a witness and a codefendant in the case. Despite these efforts, Seagers was convicted on all counts.
United States District Judge Richard M. Gergel sentenced Seagers to 240 months in federal prison each, to be followed by a four-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
The case was investigated by the ATF, Charleston Police Department, and United States Marshals. Assistant United States Attorneys Chris Schoen and Charlie Bourne of the Charleston office prosecuted the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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