State Grand Jurors issue rare report on continued problem of organized crime run from within state prisons using contraband cellphones

(COLUMBIA, SC) – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced today that the 34^th and the 35^th State Grand Jurors released a Grand Jury Report highlighting the problem of organized crime continuing to be run from within South Carolina prisons, typically by use of contraband cellphones. A recent State Grand Jury trial in Pickens County resulting in life without parole sentences against two inmates for narcotics trafficking highlights the severity of the issue and the efforts of the State Grand Jury to fight the problem.

“Locking someone up doesn’t make us safer if they’re still running criminal empires from behind bars,” said Attorney General Wilson. “Inmates with contraband cellphones aren’t just continuing their crimes, they’re escalating them. We know how to stop this; the technology already exists and is being used in federal prisons. This is why I am calling on Congress and the FCC to give states the authority to jam these illegal communications and shut these criminal networks down, for good.”

But it’s not just the public that’s still in danger.

“Illegal contraband cellphones allow career criminals to prey on innocent victims and continue committing crimes from behind bars,” said Joel E. Anderson, Interim Director of the S.C. Department of Corrections. “The situation is highly dangerous for our staff, other inmates, and our communities. I thank the State Grand Jury for its work to bring this issue to light and Gov. McMaster and the S.C. General Assembly for funding measures to help us identify illegal cellphone signals and hold the criminals accountable.”

“Las Señoritas” Multi-Defendant Jury Trial

On Friday, June 27, 2025, following a weeklong joint trial, a Pickens County jury found Darrell (DJ) Foster McCoy, Matthew (Matt) David McCoy, and Randall (RJ) Gene Posey guilty in the “Las Señoritas” State Grand Jury investigation. All three defendants were convicted of Trafficking Methamphetamine, 400 Grams or More (Conspiracy). The trial was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Savanna Goude and Assistant Attorney General Walt Whitmire before the Honorable R. Scott Sprouse.

Both McCoys were inmates in SCDC when they trafficked the methamphetamine in the Las Senoritas investigation, because they had previously been convicted of trafficking methamphetamine in the Family Tradition State Grand Jury case. Because of their extensive prior criminal records and their continued trafficking of methamphetamine while in prison for that very crime, the Attorney General’s Office had served both McCoys with Notice of Intent to Seek Life Without Parole. Following the jury verdicts of guilty, Judge Sprouse sentenced DJ McCoy and Matthew McCoy to life in prison without parole. Randall Posey, who was not an SCDC inmate, was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

“The McCoys were so proud of the fact that they were convicted of drug trafficking in the Family Tradition case that they got tattoos that say, ‘Family Tradition.’ Well, they have a new family tradition: being in prison for life without parole,” said Attorney General Wilson.

During the trial, the witnesses and evidence established that brothers DJ McCoy and Matt McCoy were leaders of an Upstate narcotics trafficking organization, using contraband cell phones within the South Carolina Department of Corrections to coordinate trafficking kilograms of methamphetamine in Pickens, Greenville, Laurens, Anderson, Oconee, and Abbeville Counties. The jury heard testimony that the McCoys directed their various dealers and co-defendants to travel to Atlanta to obtain as much as 30 kilograms a week of cartel methamphetamine for sale and use throughout South Carolina. The jury heard further testimony that Randall Posey was a distributor for the McCoy brothers. The Attorney General’s Office entered 2,849.57 grams of methamphetamine into evidence during the trial and conservatively estimates that over 630 kilograms of methamphetamine was brought into this state at the direction of the McCoys from 2021-2022.

Three other co-defendants, who were additional narcotics distributors for the McCoy brothers, were also scheduled to stand trial but chose to enter guilty pleas. Joseph Edward Moore pleaded guilty to Trafficking Methamphetamine, 400 Grams or More (Conspiracy), Trafficking Methamphetamine, 400 Grams or More, Possession of a Weapon During a Violent Crime, and Distribution of Methamphetamine. He was sentenced to 27 years.

Tony Eugene McCoy pleaded guilty to Trafficking Methamphetamine, 400 Grams or More (Conspiracy), Financial Transaction Involving Property Derived From Unlawful Drug Activity (Money Laundering), and Trafficking Methamphetamine, 28 Grams or More, But Less Than 100 Grams. He was sentenced to 20 years.

Travis Mitchell Hendricks pleaded guilty to Trafficking Methamphetamine, 28 Grams or More, But Less Than 100 Grams (Conspiracy) and Financial Transaction Involving Property Derived From Unlawful Drug Activity (Money Laundering). He was sentenced to 20 years.

“Clean Sweep” Guilty Plea

On July 1, 2025, Abbygale El-Dier pleaded guilty to child abuse charges against her minor daughter in the Clean Sweep State Grand Jury case. El-Dier pleaded guilty to Criminal Sexual Conduct with a Minor, First Degree, two counts of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, First Degree, and one count of criminal conspiracy. Sentencing was deferred until a later date to be determined, when she will face a sentence of 31 years to imprisonment for life. El-Dier remains in custody.

Jacob Lance, the alleged co-conspirator, is a Lee prison inmate who is alleged to have used contraband cell phones smuggled into the prison to perpetrate the abuse of the minor victim. He is currently charged with Criminal Sexual Conduct with a Minor, First Degree (7 counts), Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, First Degree (11 Counts), Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Second Degree (12 Counts), and one count of criminal conspiracy. Given the severity of his prior record for which he is in SCDC, Lance has been notified by the Attorney General’s Office of intent to seek a sentence of life without the possibility of parole for qualifying offenses should a conviction be secured. The trial of Lance is expected to be scheduled in Greenville in the Fall of 2025, date to be determined.

“Paper Route” Indictments

In the State Grand Jury investigation Paper Route, SCDC Inmate Wayne A. Hollinshead has been indicted for various offenses, including trafficking marijuana 100 pounds or more, Money Laundering more than $100,000, Criminal Conspiracy, Intimidation of Witnesses, and Obstruction of Justice. Seized in the investigation were approximately $1,000,000 in assets allegedly derived from inmate Hollinshead’s illegal activities directed while in prison using contraband cellphones. These alleged illegally gained assets included balances in checking accounts, savings accounts, cash management accounts, CDs, cryptocurrency, and hundreds of thousands of dollars of cash.      

Grand Jury Reports of the 34^th and 35^th South Carolina State Grand Juries

The State Grand Juries that have been investigating these and other cases with a connection to organized crime and corruption in the prisons called on the FCC and the federal government to allow state prisons to jam contraband cellphones at their facilities. The State Grand Jury Reports stated: “Gang leaders continue to run their criminal organizations once sentenced to prison, and inmate leaders develop new ways to commit crime with organizations they run within the prison walls. These inmate organizations extend their reach into the community, committing complex crimes throughout South Carolina, the United States, and the world.” The Reports stated the inmates were able to do this with “[c]ontraband cell phones illegally smuggled inside the prisons.”

While applauding the efforts of public officials and prison officers to stem the tide, the State Grand Jury Reports noted that inmate criminal organizations traffic in as much “fentanyl and methamphetamine and cocaine as they ever did,” commit fraud on government benefits “meant to help law-abiding citizens through tough times,” and engage in extortion of and scams on people on the outside. The reports also pointed to the inmates’ control of an extensive contraband trade within the prisons, concluding that “[m]illions of dollars are being made both inside and outside the wire -- by the inmates and their associates on the outside,” including corrupt correctional officers and staff, “fellow gang members, friends, wives, girlfriends, and even people groomed by inmates.”  “Whether officer, staff, or just someone on the outside, they all work for the inmates, not the other way around.”

The Reports noted that SCDC had invested heavily in trying to prevent contraband cell phones from entering the facilities, and while “SCDC is fighting the good fight, but it is not that simple to defeat the criminal mind when that criminal mind can make millions of dollars”.  In response to the outcry for a solution from prisons across the nation, the FCC did allow a managed access program that SCDC has adopted. “Managed access allows a facility to hire certified vendors who can identify unauthorized cell phones within the facility and request that they be ‘bricked’ by providers within two days.”  However, the Reports stated that while managed access has been “worthy of continued effort,” it is “not immediate,” and it is “complicated and requires new capabilities that would be more easily and effectively solved by targeted jamming.”  The report concludes, “[j]amming the cell phone communication of State inmates would immediately eliminate so much of the criminal activities within our state prisons.” 

Law Enforcement and Prosecutorial Partners in these State Grand Jury Investigations

The Las Señoritas case was investigated by the South Carolina State Grand Jury and prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Savanna Goude. The State Grand Jury was assisted in this case by a partnership of the Attorney General’s State Grand Jury Division, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the Thirteenth Circuit Solicitor’s Office, the South Carolina Department of Corrections Office of the Inspector General, the Greenville County Multi-Jurisdictional Drug Enforcement Unit, Abbeville County Sheriff’s Office, Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, Laurens County Sheriff’s Department, Oconee County Sheriff’s Office, Pickens County Sheriff’s Office, Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office, Clemson Police Department, Easley Police Department, and Travelers Rest Police Department. 

The Clean Sweep case was investigated by the South Carolina State Grand Jury, which was assisted in this case by a partnership of the Attorney General’s State Grand Jury Division, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), the South Carolina Department of Corrections Office of the Inspector General, the Thirteenth Circuit Solicitor’s Office, and the Simpsonville Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Deputy Attorney General David Fernandez, Special Assistant Attorney General Margaret Scott, Assistant Solicitor Courtney Rea, and State Grand Jury Division Chief Attorney Creighton Waters. 

The Paper Route case was investigated by the South Carolina State Grand Jury, which was assisted in this case by a partnership of the Attorney General’s State Grand Jury Division, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), and the South Carolina Department of Corrections Office of the Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Deputy Attorney General David Fernandez, Special Assistant Attorney General Margaret Scott, Assistant Solicitor Courtney Rea, and State Grand Jury Division Chief Attorney Creighton Waters. 

State Grand Jury Chief Attorney S. Creighton Waters thanked all the agencies for their hard work in the case.

Attorney General Wilson stressed that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.

You can read the State Grand Jury Reports here and here.