Heroin dealer gets time in prison
By John Joyce
Published in News on January 29, 2015 2:05 PM
A self-confessed gang leader, who in a seven-year span supplied the streets of Goldsboro and Wayne County with more than 33 kilograms of heroin, will spend more than twice that amount of time in federal prison, the N.C. Department of Justice announced Wednesday.
Phillip Hardy, 33, of Goldsboro, was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years in prison with an additional 10 years probation to follow, according to the DOJ press release.
Wayne County Sheriff Larry Pierce said he was pleased with the sentence, but not naive about its consequences.
"We are pleased he is off the streets. Now that he has been sentenced, we are hoping that might help curtail some of the drug activities going on across the county. That said, when you get one guy you know there is always somebody ready to take their place," Pierce said.
Federal sentencing guidelines stipulate there will be no opportunity for parole for Hardy.
An investigator who worked the case and who continues to work undercover agreed to discuss the Hardy investigation, but asked that his name not be revealed.
He said Hardy is a self-described "five-star general" of the Bloods street gang.
"He is a validated gang member. He confessed to me that he was the second-highest ranking Blood in Goldsboro," the investigator said.
Known on the streets as "Beans," Hardy pleaded guilty in July 2014 to conspiracy to distribute and to possession with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin, the press release said.
A joint investigation with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency into Hardy's drug trafficking activities began after several citizen-driven complaints came into the Wayne County Sheriff's Office in 2013.
"We just had numerous complaints about him drug trafficking. He had a violent past, and we had all these complaints of him selling heroin," the investigator said.
Prior to this time, Hardy continued racking up charges for weapons and drugs, but he would always get probation, he said.
What those charges added up to, however, were grounds for Hardy to be investigated, charged and eventually sentenced federally.
Once the joint investigation began, a series of "controlled buys" -- purchases of illegal drugs made by undercover officers or confidential informants who were audio and visually recorded -- were conducted.
The controlled buys resulted in search and arrest warrants being secured for Hardy.
In June 2013, agents executed those search warrants at both Hardy's residence and the home of his grandparents where he sometimes stayed and did business.
According to the press release, Hardy was in his home at the time the search warrant was executed and was arrested. In his possession were a pistol, a 50-round magazine and ammunition and 68.43 bundles of heroin -- a total of 27.372 grams.
A bundle is equivalent to 10 individual doses of heroin, called bindles. A bindle alone can sell for anywhere from $10 to $25, the investigator said.
"If it is what they call 'raw,' meaning that it hasn't been cut (mixed) yet with anything or 'stepped on,' it can go for $25," he added.
The agents also found $13,686 in cash and plastic bags used to package heroin, after which another bundle of heroin was located in Hardy's car, the release said.
At his grandparents' home, agents discovered five firearms, two of which were stolen, assorted ammunition and magazines, a digital scale and more plastic bags.
During the investigation, it was determined Hardy had distributed more than 33 kilograms of heroin between 2007 and 2013, the release said.
Hardy was indicted Feb. 18, 2014.
On July 25, 2014, Hardy gave a written statement acknowledging his role in heroin distribution and expressed remorse for the harm his actions brought upon himself, his family and society, the press release said.
Pierce said the drugs and the gangs that are interrelated are the sheriff's office biggest concerns.
"We are trying to work both now as our top priority," he said.