Left to Right: Levy McGee, Joseph Bermingham, Allen Thompson
A Yellville man has been sentenced to 14 years in federal prison and a Cotter resident is set to be sentenced late next month on federal drug-related charges.
Federal court records show that 30-year-old Levy Derrick McGee of Yellville was sentenced after pleading guilty to distributing drugs. In addition to his prison sentence, McGee will be on supervised probation for three years after doing his time.
Forty-eight-year-old Joseph Bermingham of Cotter is set to be sentenced September 26.
An objection to the pre-sentencing investigative report was filed by Bermingham’s lawyer August 19. Material pertaining to the objection is sealed by the court and it is not known if the objection will delay the sentencing.
The two most often mentioned drugs in the federal indictment of the men were Fentanyl and methamphetamine.
There were others reported to be involved with McGee and Bermingham in the sale of drugs. They are identified in court records as 40-year-old Anna Atchley of Harrison and 32-year-old Allen Ray Thompson who is listed as a native of Lawton, Oklahoma.
Federal cases were opened on Atchley and Thompson. On June 18, Thompson was sentenced to 25 years in prison with five years of supervised probation to follow, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Fort Smith.
At one point, Thompson was pulled over near Harrison for a minor traffic violation and a drug dog alerted on the vehicle.
Officers found almost 5,000 grams of methamphetamine, almost 2,000 Fentynal pills and five firearms. As a convicted felon, Thompson was not allowed to be around firearms.
Texts were discovered during a search of Thompson’s cellphone showing he was delivering the drugs to customers in the Harrison area.
Thompson was reported to have been paid in advance for the drugs via an internet-based, peer-to-peer money transfer platform.
A jury trial in Atchley’s case is now set for October 7. She has been free on $10,000 appearance bond.
Bermingham and McGee are no strangers to courtrooms and jail cells. McGee has had drug-related charges filed against him in Baxter, Boone and Marion Counties and has been charged through the years with possessing and selling various drugs, including methamphetamine, marijuana, suboxone, morphine sulfate and Diazepam.
During a June 2018 compliance visit to Bermingham’s home by probation and parole officers, about $4500 in cash was found in a backpack.
At the time, Bermingham was on parole and listed himself as unemployed.
He currently has two cases open and a petition to revoke his probation in a third Baxter County case.
The local cases opened on Bermingham have basically been inactive since he was taken into federal custody.
Bermingham first appeared in Baxter County Circuit Court in 2007. Since that time 12 more cases have been opened on him.
Bermingham and McGee are currently being held in the Washington County jail for the U.S. Marshals Service. Thompson does not yet show up on the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate roster and Atchley has yet to be sentenced.
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