A Burlington man has been sentenced to over 20 years in prison following an investigation assisted by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and several other neighboring law enforcement agencies.

United States District Court Chief Judge John A. Jarvey sentenced 36-year-old Lavelle Harris to 262 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Harris is ordered to serve five years of supervised release following his prison term and pay $100 to the Crime Victims’ Fund. According to Acting U.S. Attorney Richard D. Westphal, Harris was involved in the distribution of more than 4.5 kilograms of ice methamphetamine. Harris has a history of violence and was designated as a career offender under the United States Sentencing Guidelines, as he has two prior felony drug convictions. Harris was also under criminal justice supervision at the time of this offense, and was identified as a member of the Black P Stones street gang. He was one of eight defendants who faced federal charges after a multi-year joint federal and state narcotics investigation. The investigation was conducted by over 25 agencies including the Washington, Henry, and Louisa county sheriff’s offices.