South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced significant developments in the Prison Empire investigation following a special term of court for the State Grand Jury during the week of June 24, 2024, in Pickens County.
Jennifer Nicole Burns, a key target in both the Prison Empire and Las Señoritas investigations, pleaded guilty to her charges on the morning of her trial. Burns was initially scheduled for trial concerning a March 19, 2019 incident where law enforcement found approximately three kilograms of methamphetamine, a handgun, marijuana, and $10,740 in her bedroom safe. Burns had been distributing methamphetamine under the direction of her boyfriend, Warren Chastain, an inmate at the South Carolina Department of Corrections with connections to a cartel. After indicating cooperation with law enforcement, Burns fled to Mexico that same night and continued facilitating drug trafficking into Upstate South Carolina.
Burns pleaded guilty to multiple charges including Trafficking Methamphetamine (400 Grams or More), Possession of a Weapon During the Commission of a Violent Crime, and Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana. She rejected the state's global plea offer in both cases and was sentenced to 55 years in prison by Judge R. Lawton McIntosh.
In addition to Burns' plea, William Russell Oliver was found guilty on June 26, 2024. He faced charges including Trafficking Methamphetamine (28 Grams or More but Less than 100 Grams), Possession of a Weapon During a Violent Crime, and Possession of Narcotics (Hydrocodone). These charges stemmed from a February 16, 2018 incident where law enforcement discovered approximately 93 grams of methamphetamine among other items at his residence. Oliver was also implicated as a co-conspirator in trafficking large quantities of methamphetamine and heroin. On July 18, 2024, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison by Judge McIntosh.
The Prison Empire investigation targets a drug trafficking organization that operated from September 2013 to May 2021 primarily out of the South Carolina Department of Corrections. Inmates used contraband cellular phones to coordinate drug trafficking with co-conspirators in Upstate South Carolina and Mexico. This case is noted as the largest in State Grand Jury history with over 90 defendants facing hundreds of charges.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the South Carolina State Grand Jury; Attorney General’s State Grand Jury Division; South Carolina Law Enforcement Division; South Carolina Department of Corrections’ Division of Police Services; sheriff's offices from Pickens County, Greenville County Multi-Jurisdictional Drug Enforcement Unit; Anderson County Sheriff’s Office; Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office; Edgefield County Sheriff’s Office; Lexington County Sheriff’s Office; Laurens County Sheriff’s Office; Easley Police Department; Liberty Police Department; Pickens Police Department; United States Marshals Service; and South Carolina Governor’s Counterdrug Task Force.
Assistant Attorney General Savanna Goude led the prosecution team with assistance from Assistant Attorney General Christian Fazel and Litigation Services Coordinator Shane Acito.
Attorney General Wilson emphasized that all other defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
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