Felon Gets Federal Time
A federal judge has sentenced a Chadbourn man to ten years in prison and three years of supervised release.
Scotty Macneil Nealy, 30, of Chadbourn, was sentenced on Feb. 24 on charges of possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of a firearm during a crime, and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
The sheriff’s office said in a press release that on March 20, 2018, Vice-Narcotics Investigators conducted a controlled buy of cocaine from Nealy as part of a larger investigation. At the conclusion of the case, they obtained warrants on Nealy for the possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver cocaine, and sale and delivery of the drug. As part of a 2018 warrant roundup, investigators attempted to locate Nealy to serve the active warrants but were unsuccessful.
Almost a year later, on March 1, 2019, Cumberland County deputies encountered Nealy at a Circle K convenience store on Gillespie Street in Fayetteville. They deployed a drug sniffing dog on Nealy’s vehicle, and located heroin, crack cocaine, powder cocaine, numerous prescription pills, and a stolen Ruger .380 handgun.
Nealy was charged with possession with trafficking cocaine, possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of a stolen firearm, drug paraphernalia, and maintaining a vehicle for drug activities. Nealy was also served with the outstanding warrants from Columbus County Sheriff’s Office.
That same month, Nealy’s charges were adopted federally.
On March 6, 2020, Nealy was federally indicted. On April 1, 2020, Columbus County Sheriff’s Office, an ATF Violent Crimes Task Force Officer, along with the U.S. Marshals served the arrest warrant on Nealy at his residence located on H. Bellamy Lane, Chadbourn.
Inside the residence, law enforcement officers located a 9mm handgun hidden in a floor vent with both crack and powder cocaine, digital scales, and packaging material. They also located heroin hidden on top of a cabinet and over $2,600 cash on his person. Nealy was arrested after the search and turned over to the U.S. Marshals. On April 14, 2020, Nealy was again federally indicted, this time for charges related to the April 1, 2020, search.
“Columbus County Sheriff’s Office has the privilege of having a full time ATF Violent Crimes Task Force Officer that diligently works to keep violent and repeat offenders off Columbus County streets,” sheriff Bill Rogers said in a press release. “This partnership ensures that the worst offenders’ cases, meeting certain criteria, are presented to determine if they will be transferred to the federal jurisdiction. This benefits Columbus County citizens, as most federal sentences are harsher than state sentences, as seen in this case. We are grateful for the positive working relationships that Columbus County Sheriff’s Office shares with other agencies.”