Four Members of Drug Trafficking Organization Arrested

Thursday, August 9th, four members of a drug trafficking organization based in Lee County pled guilty to charges against them on the second day of their trial, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Their guilty pleas bring the total number of members of the organization who have pled guilty in federal court to eighteen. A nineteenth federal defendant, Phillip Maddox, 41, from Auburn, is set for trial in October.

The four individuals who pled guilty yesterday were, Worldly Diego Holstick, 36 and Timothy Lamar Spinks, 43, both from Auburn; James Earl McIntyre, 28, from Montgomery; and James Lee Hamilton, 41, from Santa Rosa, California.

According to witnesses who testified during the trial Wednesday, Holstick was the leader of the drug trafficking organization which stretched from Georgia to California. Spinks obtained cocaine from Holstick and distributed it in Lee County. McIntyre provided addresses to Holstick so that he could have boxes containing five to ten pounds of marijuana shipped from California
to Alabama. Finally, Hamilton helped launder the proceeds of the drug activity through numerous bank accounts in California.

Holstick and Spinks pled guilty to various crimes including conspiracy to sell cocaine and marijuana, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. They each face a maximum sentence of life in prison. McIntyre pled guilty to various crimes including conspiracy to sell marijuana and he faces up to five years in prison. Hamilton pled guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering which carries a maximum sentence of twenty years in prison.

These cases were investigated by the following agencies: DEA – Montgomery Resident Office, Auburn Police Division, Eufaula Police Department, Prattville Police Department, Alabama Attorney General’s Office, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), Alabama HIDTA Task Force, Alabama National Guard, Autauga County Sheriff’s Office, Central Alabama Drug Task Force (CADTF), Elmore County Sheriff’s Office, Millbrook Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Montgomery Police Department, Lee County Sheriff’s Office, Lee County District Attorney’s Office, Opelika Police Department, Troy Police Department, and the United States Marshals Service.

The federal case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Verne Speirs, Kevin Davidson, Josh Wendell, and Curtis Ivy.