Philadelphia Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl Trafficking

Synthetic Opioid Seized Was Enough to Kill 150,000 People

Jackson, Miss. – Brian Christopher Sims, 35, of Philadelphia, pled guilty today before U.S. Chief District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst, Jere T. Miles, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New Orleans, and Steven Maxwell, Acting Director of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics.  

On August 6, 7, and 16, Sims sold fentanyl to an individual on Church Street in Philadelphia. The fentanyl sold by Sims consisted of over 31 separate, single-dose sublingual sprays that contained 200 micrograms each. The total amount of fentanyl sold was in excess of 300 grams.

“This criminal endangered all of East Central Mississippi with one of the deadliest drugs in the world. This tiny amount of fentanyl could have killed approximately 150,000 people, or five times the population of Neshoba County alone. I applaud our investigators, agents and prosecutors for bringing this evildoer to justice and taking this poison off our streets,” said U.S. Attorney Hurst.       

“This fentanyl dealer was bringing a deadly drug into our local communities,” said Jere T. Miles, HSI New Orleans Special Agent in Charge.  “Our special agents are committed to removing this drug from our streets and dismantling the criminal organizations involved in its distribution.”

“This investigation represents a commitment by all agencies involved to collectively work in partnership for the purpose of improving the quality of life in communities throughout Mississippi by effectively removing dangerous predatory violent drug offenders” said Steven Maxwell, Acting Director of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics. 

Sims was charged in a three count indictment that was filed on October 22, 2019. He will be sentenced by Judge Jordan on August 21, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine.

This OCDETF operation is a result of a joint investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics. Assisting agencies included the Philadelphia Police Department, Neshoba County Sheriff’s Department, Neshoba County District Attorney’s Office, Scott County Sheriff’s Office, Flowood Police Department, Rankin County Sheriff’s Department, Hinds County Sheriff’s Department, Carthage Police Department, Union Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Louisville Police Department, Mississippi Highway Patrol, and the United States Marshals Service.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Chalk is prosecuting the case.

The OCDETF program is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations, and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt or dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.