AUGUSTA, GA: Four defendants are awaiting sentencing after admitting they participated in an operation that used pill presses to package and distribute illegal drugs.
Albert Bynoe, a/k/a “Chino,” a/k/a “Bossman Chino,” 35, of Decatur, Ga., awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute, and to Distribute, Methamphetamine, said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. The guilty plea subjects Bynoe to a statutory sentence of up to 20 years in prison, along with substantial financial penalties, followed by a period of supervised release after completion of any prison term.
There is no parole in the federal system.
“Our law enforcement partners did exceptional work in identifying and intercepting foreign shipments of materials used to manufacture pills containing illegal drugs,” said U.S. Attorney Estes. “Our office is committed to prosecuting makers and distributors of illegal substances that threaten the health and safety of our communities.”
Bynoe’s mother, Cynthia Dessaure-Outlaw, 58, of Grovetown, Ga., awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Unlawful Transport of Drug Paraphernalia. Two other defendants, Darnee Cooper, a/k/a “Lafayette,” a/k/a “Lafayette Bandz,” 34, of Columbia, S.C., and Nicholas Butler, 42, of Augusta, await sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute.
As described in court documents and proceedings, the investigation began in 2018 when U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents flagged a shipment addressed to Dessaure-Outlaw that contained, among other items, molds for a commercial pill press. Dessaure-Outlaw voluntarily forfeited the materials. In 2020, investigators from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration flagged a shipment of a pill press sent to Dessaure-Outlaw’s Grovetown address, and located three prior shipments that had been sent to a Columbia, S.C. address in Bynoe’s name along with large amounts of powdered binding agents used to manufacture pills.
In 2021, agents searched Bynoe’s residence in Decatur, Georgia and his rented storage unit in Tucker, Ga., seizing methamphetamine, a pill press machine, pill molds in the shape of a joker and seashells, firearms, drug paraphernalia, and cash. A September 2021 federal indictment charged Dessaure-Outlaw and Bynoe in the operation, along with Cooper, Butler and other members of the conspiracy. All four defendants pled guilty.
Sentencing for the four defendants has not yet been scheduled.
“As part of safeguarding our borders from serious health and security threats, Customs and Border Protection Savannah continues its strong collaboration with our Southern District law enforcement partners.” said, Scott Huntly, Assistant Port Director for CBP Savannah.
“Our mission at DEA is to disrupt, dismantle, and destroy drug trafficking organizations – and this illegal pill pressing operation is no different,” said Robert J. Murphy, the Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. “Thanks to the collective efforts of our law enforcement partners, these criminals will be held accountable.”
“We are committed to working with our partners to get dangerous drugs out of our communities,” said Vic Reynolds, Director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. “Illegal and unidentified pills on the streets pose a danger to public health. Thank you to the men and women working each day to bring these violators to justice.”
The case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection National Targeting Center, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Chatham-Savannah Counter Narcotics Team, the Dekalb County Sheriff’s Office, and the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted for the United States by Southern District of Georgia Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew A. Josephson and Jeremiah L. Johnson.