PRESS RELEASE: US Attorneys Office Western District of North Carolina
Allen Lee Henson, 54, of Morganton, N.C., was sentenced today to 168
months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for trafficking methamphetamine,
announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
Robert J. Murphy, Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Division of the Drug
Enforcement Administration (DEA), which oversees the Charlotte District Office, and Sheriff
Banks Hinceman of the Burke County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO), join U.S. Attorney King in
making today’s announcement.
According to court documents and court proceedings, in March 2021, the Burke County
Sheriff’s Office initiated an investigation after learning that Henson was acquiring
methamphetamine and then re-distributing it to others within the Burke County area. During the
investigation, BCSO investigators used a confidential source to purchase methamphetamine
from Henson at his residence on at least two occasions. On April 23, 2021, law enforcement
executed a search warrant at Henson’s residence. During the search, deputies seized distribution
quantities of methamphetamine, marijuana, digital scales, drug paraphernalia, and $23,733 in
U.S. currency. Court records show that on February 10, 2022, Henson met with an undercover
officer (UC) in Caldwell County, where Henson sold the UC more than 71 grams of
methamphetamine in exchange for $1,400 in cash.
On November 15, 2023, Henson pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams
or more of methamphetamine. He is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the
custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons.
The investigation was conducted by the DEA and the Burke County Sheriff’s Office, with the
assistance of the Lenoir Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Hess of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville prosecuted
the case.
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