Former Economy Inn Managers Sentenced to Prison for Selling Drugs from the Hotel

Gulfport, Miss. – Two former managers at the Economy Inn in Bay St. Louis were sentenced today for their involvement in a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute drugs containing methamphetamine and fentanyl from the hotel. 

Pernell Robert Galloway, 54, was sentenced to 131 months in prison, and Cassie Louise McKenzie, 42, was sentenced to 115 months in prison.

According to court documents, in 2023, law enforcement agents received information that Galloway and McKenzie, who were managers at the Economy Inn on Hwy 90 in Bay St. Louis, were selling drugs from the hotel.  Further investigation revealed they were selling a methamphetamine/fentanyl mixture. On June 8, 2023, agents conducted a search and found 14 grams of a methamphetamine/fentanyl mixture in two separate bags, as well as a firearm, digital scales, and additional unused distribution baggies.

According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, fentanyl is approximately 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin.  The DEA reports that two milligrams of fentanyl can be lethal, and one kilogram of fentanyl has the potential to kill 500,000 people.  More facts on fentanyl can be found at https://www.dea.gov/resources/facts-about-fentanyl and https://www.dea.gov/resources/facts-about-fentanyl.

Galloway and McKenzie were indicted by a federal grand jury and they subsequently pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.

U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee of the Southern District of Mississippi and Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Arnett of the Drug Enforcement Administration made the announcement.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Erica Rose is prosecuting the case.

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