Multiple Search Warrants net guns, drugs and money | Eastern NC Now

Press Release:



    This week the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office Drug Unit executed three (3) search warrants in the Chocowinity and Aurora areas and assisted the Pitt County Sheriff's Office with a search warrant in Pitt County. These search warrants were intended to target fentanyl dealers in Beaufort and Pitt Counties.

    With assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Raleigh, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations, and the Pitt County Sheriff's Office, a major pipeline of fentanyl distribution has been disrupted in Beaufort and Pitt counties.

    As a result, Deputies seized 60 grams of fentanyl, 34 grams of methamphetamine, 1 gram of cocaine, 3 grams of psilocybin mushrooms, 222 grams of marijuana, $13,236 in US currency and three firearms in Beaufort County. One of the firearms was stolen from a Beaufort County residence in 2021.

    The following individuals were arrested:

    38-year-old Orlando Neville Cooper of Chocowinity, NC was held in the Beaufort County Detention Center under a $275,000 cash only bond for the following charges:

• (2) counts of Trafficking in Fentanyl
• (1) count of Felony Possession of Schedule II
• (1) count of Felony Possession of Cocaine
• (1) count of Possession of Drug Paraphernalia

    32-year-old Anthony Osbourne Goff of Aurora, NC was held in the Beaufort County Detention Center under a $250,000 cash only Bond for the following charges:

• (2) counts of Trafficking in Fentanyl
• (1) count of Trafficking in Methamphetamine
• (1) count of PWISD Schedule I Controlled Substance
• (1) count of PWISD Marijuana
• (2) counts of Felony Possess Controlled Substance in Jail
• (2) counts of Possession of Schedule IV Controlled Substance
• (1) count of Resisting a Public Officer
• (2) counts of Injury to Personal Property
• (1) count of Possession of Drug Paraphernalia

    43-year-old Archie Lendell Minor of Edward, NC was held in the Pitt County Detention Center under a $3,765,000 secured bond for the following charges:

    Beaufort County Charges

• (4) counts of Trafficking in Fentanyl
• (1) count of Possession of a Firearm by a Felon
• (1) count of Possession of a Stolen Firearm
• (1) count of Possess a Weapon of Mass Destruction
• (1) count of PWISD Schedule II Controlled Substance

    Pitt County Charges

• (1) count of Felony Death by Distribution
• (1) count of Felony Possession of Heroin
• (1) count of Possess Marijuana <1/2 Ounce
• (1) count of Possess Drug Paraphernalia

    These cases concluded a three month-long investigation into the distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine by the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office Drug Unit, Pitt County Sheriff's Office, and the DEA.

    The Beaufort County Sheriff's Office continues to work to identify and address the problems created by dangerous illegal drugs being sold in Beaufort County. Sheriff Hammonds and his staff are committed to working with surrounding law enforcement agencies and public partners to reduce the effects of deadly fentanyl in Beaufort County, through enforcement, public awareness, and education. This community approach is paying off with the reduction of overdoses and overdose deaths.

    Sheriff Scott Hammonds asks anyone with information regarding suspected drug sale/use or any other crime to contact the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office at (252) 946-7111. You can also submit tips anonymously by contacting Beaufort County Crime Stoppers at (252) 974-6400 or submit your confidential tip by downloading the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office App and selecting Submit A Tip.

• Sheriff Scott Hammonds
•     Beaufort County Sheriff's Office