Gwinnett County: Fentanyl, meth guilty plea earns 40-year prison sentence for repeat offender

GWINNETT COUNTY, GA – A Gainesville man is returning to prison on drug charges after serving time on federal charges, the Gwinnett District Attorney’s Office said today, July 27. 

Irvin Lamar Simpson, 57, pled guilty on Monday to three counts of trafficking fentanyl, one count of trafficking methamphetamine, one count of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, obstruction, and possession of a drug-related object.

Simpson was sentenced to 45 years with 40 to serve in prison without the possibility of parole

“This defendant had a chance to change with his release from federal prison. But he turned his back on that opportunity,” District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said. “We are going to hold accountable anyone who peddles deadly drugs in this jurisdiction.”

In January 2023, Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI) drug agents began surveilling Simpson after receiving a tip that he was selling illegal drugs. Agents saw him get into a car carrying a backpack. Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office deputies stopped the car, and a K-9 alerted deputies that drugs were in the backpack.

In addition to 35 grams of fentanyl, 98 grams of methamphetamine, and more than 20 grams of cocaine – altogether worth roughly $4,000 – investigators recovered a handgun and scales from the backpack.

The defendant pulled away from deputies trying to arrest him and ran into a wooded area close to where the car was stopped. Gwinnett County Sheriff’s now-retired K-9 Cino was able to track the defendant down and hold him until he was taken into custody.

Prosecutors presented evidence that Simpson was a career drug dealer with felony convictions dating back to the 1980s.  He was out of federal prison on early release because officials believed the defendant was no longer a threat to society. However, just six months before he was arrested in Gwinnett County, the defendant was stopped in Habersham County with a distribution amount of fentanyl, the Gwinnett District Attorney’s Office said 

Drug and Gang Task Force Managing Assistant District Attorney David Ian and Assistant District Attorney Brian Trepanier prosecuted the case with assistance from Investigator Yayoi Huggins and Victim Witness Advocate Trina Bradford. The Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office and the GBI were critical to apprehending the defendant and closing the case.

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