A Detroit man, Khari Smith, 21, has been sentenced to 200 months in prison by Chief U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves for conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine. The sentencing took place on Friday.
The investigation began in May 2023 when law enforcement identified an individual distributing fentanyl and methamphetamine in Lexington. Authorities tracked a vehicle transporting the drugs from Detroit to Kentucky. On July 10, 2023, a traffic stop was conducted on two vehicles believed to be connected. Khari Smith and his brother Khmari Smith were found in one vehicle without any drugs. In the other vehicle, co-defendant Brianna Hanspard was discovered with significant quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl. Hanspard admitted her involvement in transporting drugs from Detroit to Lexington for payment.
Further investigations revealed that Khari and Khmari Smith continued their drug distribution using sources in Detroit. Searches of their leased residences in Lexington uncovered substantial amounts of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and firearms.
Khmari Smith received a sentence of 384 months while Hanspard was sentenced to 84 months during previous court proceedings.
Khari Smith is required under federal law to serve at least 85 percent of his sentence before being released under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years.
The sentences were announced by Carlton S. Shier IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Jim Scott, Special Agent in Charge at DEA's Louisville Field Division; Phillip J. Burnett Jr., Commissioner of the Kentucky State Police; and Chief Lawrence Weathers from the Lexington Police Department.
The investigation involved collaboration between the DEA, KSP, and Lexington Police Department with Assistant U.S. Attorney Roger West prosecuting the case.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation aimed at disrupting high-level drug traffickers through a coordinated multi-agency approach leveraging federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.