Several individuals from Baldwin County were sentenced to prison for their involvement in a methamphetamine-trafficking organization, according to an announcement on Mar. 23 by U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama.
The sentencing follows an investigation into a drug-trafficking group led by Douglas McArthur Watts, Jr., which distributed large quantities of methamphetamine across the region. The case highlights ongoing efforts by law enforcement agencies to combat organized drug distribution and related criminal activity.
Court documents show that Watts, along with Daryl Wayne Thomas, David Joel Murphy, Benny Joe Ray, Jr., Danielle Lea Morris, and Jack Carnell Rowe pleaded guilty to participating in the operation. Between June 2022 and July 2024, agents seized significant amounts of methamphetamine, firearms, cash, and other drugs from members of the group. Authorities conducted multiple controlled purchases using audio and video recordings at various locations in Baldwin County throughout 2023 and early 2024.
Notable incidents include seizures such as nearly ten grams sold by Rowe in Foley on June 20, over ninety grams sold by Watts on July 18 in Foley, more than twenty grams seized from Ray and Morris’s trailer on September 28 in Foley, ninety-six grams taken from Thomas during a “buy-bust” operation on January 16 in Foley, and twenty-seven grams sold by Murphy on February 14 in Summerdale. In July 2024, investigators executed a search warrant at one of Watts’s supplier’s apartments in Pensacola, Florida—recovering over three kilograms of methamphetamine alongside fentanyl supplies and firearms.
U.S. District Judge Kristi K. DuBose handed down sentences ranging from five years to nearly twelve years for those convicted: Watts received ten years; Thomas received just under twelve years; Murphy was sentenced to almost eleven years; Ray will serve five years; while Morris and Rowe await sentencing. Each defendant faces supervised release terms with conditions including drug testing or treatment; Murphy will also undergo mental health evaluation.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms & Explosives (ATF), Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office led the investigation with support from Florida authorities including Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and Florida Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Roller prosecuted the case.
This prosecution forms part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative created under Executive Order 14159: Protecting the American People Against Invasion—a partnership focused on dismantling criminal cartels operating within or affecting U.S interests.
