Thirteen members of a prison-based methamphetamine distribution ring have been convicted and sentenced following a multi-year federal investigation. Authorities say state inmates Edward Kelvin Pope, David Wilson, and Kevin Josue Campos Rivera coordinated drug trafficking operations from Central State Prison in Macon, working with federal inmate Jose Santos Isaola Cisneros at the Federal Correctional Institution in Atlanta to distribute methamphetamine through couriers and distributors across north Georgia. Pope, known as “Paw Paw,” was already serving a life sentence plus 70 years for armed robbery, kidnapping, and other violent crimes at the time of the offenses.

The investigation began in November 2020 after law enforcement learned the inmates were directing couriers outside the prison to sell large amounts of methamphetamine. Authorities documented several major transactions, including the delivery of two kilograms of methamphetamine at a Cartersville gas station in April 2021 and another kilogram sold in a Stockbridge restaurant parking lot. When agents later searched a residence in Stockbridge connected to the operation, they discovered an active methamphetamine conversion lab and seized more than 3,000 kilograms of methamphetamine. Additional searches uncovered drugs, firearms, and tens of thousands of dollars in cash.

Federal officials said the sentences send a clear message that criminal activity will not be tolerated even behind prison walls. U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg said the defendants coordinated the distribution of “massive amounts” of methamphetamine throughout north Georgia, while DEA officials noted that methamphetamine continues to fuel addiction and violence in communities. The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the U.S. Marshals Service, with assistance from the Cartersville Police Department, Henry County Sheriff’s Office, and the Georgia Department of Corrections. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laurel B. Milam and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua May prosecuted the case.