Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney W. WALTER WILKINS stated that Antawin Burgess, age 30, of Gresham, South Carolina, was found guilty after a four-day trial in federal court in Florence, of conspiracy to distribute crack and cocaine, and distribution of cocaine. United States District Judge Terry L. Wooten presided over the trial and will impose sentence at a later date.

Evidence presented during the trial established that Burgess was part of a large drug distribution network operating in several counties, including Florence, Williamsburg, Georgetown, and Darlington. During the trial, 18 co-conspirator witnesses testified that they dealt crack and cocaine with Burgess beginning as early as 1998. One of those witnesses, acting as a confidential informant working for the Florence County Sheriff’s Office, also made a controlled purchase of cocaine from Burgess in January of 2007. Evidence was also presented that during a traffic stop of Burgess in August of 1998, an officer with the Williamsburg County Sheriff's Office found crack, a 9 mm handgun with two ammunition clips, and $695 cash in the vehicle Burgess was driving.

Mr. Wilkins stated that based on Burgess' prior felony drug conviction, he is facing a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years and a maximum of life imprisonment.

The case was investigated by agents of the Florence County Sheriff’s Office, the Williamsburg County Sheriff's Office, SLED, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney A. Bradley Parham of the Florence office handled prosecution of the case.