A Little Elm man was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to a scheme involving drones used to drop methamphetamine and cellphones to a Texas prison.
Texas prison drone drug smuggling operation
Tyler Joseph Gatten, 33, also known as “Chains,” pled guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to manufacture and distribute methamphetamine.
On October 28, U.S. District Judge Sean D. Jordan sentenced him to 300 months in federal prison, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas.
According to prosecutors, Gatten oversaw a drug-trafficking conspiracy that employed drones to transport kilograms of meth and cellphones into Texas Department of Criminal Justice facilities. The contraband was allegedly sold to inmates by members of a white nationalist gang.
While awaiting trial, Gatten was indicted in a separate drug conspiracy case involving inmates and correctional personnel accused of sneaking smartphones and synthetic narcotics into federal prisons.
Task Force targets prison contraband
According to investigators, the strategy involved sending drug-soaked paper to facilities disguised as legal mail.
The case was examined as part of the Homeland Security Task Force, which was established under Executive Order 14159 and titled “Protecting the American People Against Invasion,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
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