Pierre Gentry

Pierre Gentry, 25, of Spartanburg and involved distribution of almost 2,000 pounds of cocaine between 2000 and 2006, said Spartanburg Public Safety Director Tony Fisher. In an effort dubbed "Operation Kandy Rapper," investigators learned Gentry had drug connections in Atlanta and was a supplier of cocaine to mid-level dealers in the Converse Street area.
In all, that group received drugs from dealers with ties to California, Texas, Georgia and North Carolina and were responsible for shootings and other violent crimes, Fisher said.
"To some, it may be, 'OK another drug bust,' but for us, not only is this significant but hopefully next week, or the week after that, whatever we're able to do will also be significant," he said. "We have worked with social scientists and others, trying to reduce the demand. We have not had the effect at the demand level that we wanted, so we're going to have to continue to work from the law enforcement side in dealing with the profitability of the trade."
The operation was a multi-agency effort with the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office. Sheriff Chuck Wright said Friday that crime fell in the area after the drug ring was taken down, indicating they were involved in various crimes.
"Anytime you take a drug dealer and a supplier and you knock a hole in his operation, the ripple effect is big," Wright said. "It makes them scurry around and make mistakes, which is good for us."
A federal jury found Gentry and two co-defendants, Kenneth Howard, 43, and Anthony Wilkins, 32, guilty last week of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute at least 5 kilograms of cocaine and at least 50 grams of crack cocaine. The trio will be sentenced at a later date.
The investigation identified 20 people involved in the conspiracy. Twelve people have entered guilty pleas, and the remainder await trial, Fisher said.
Narcotics officers said they faced numerous obstacles during the investigation, including the difficulty in tracking down out-of-state suspects and determining the identifies of dealers known only by their street names. Spartanburg narcotics officer Sgt. Doug Harwell said the case entailed multiple interviews with co-defendants and cooperating sources who gave information that had to be verified.