3 Lexington drug dealers were sentenced to prison. 1 was connected to a fatal overdose

Authorities in Lexington County have sentenced several people to prison after investigators caught them dealing drugs.

“The dangers of illegal narcotics like fentanyl and methamphetamine continue to pose a serious risk to members of our community, especially young people who may not know that a counterfeit pill contains a lethal dose of fentanyl,” said Rick Hubbard, district attorney for the Eleventh Circuit Court, in a press release.

“We are grateful to drug enforcement officers for their efforts to rid Lexington County of these illegal substances,” Hubbard said.

Jakob Regan Dator, 21, pleaded guilty to fentanyl trafficking on July 23 and was sentenced by District Judge Milton G. Kimpson to 20 years in the South Carolina Department of Corrections. He is not eligible for parole under state law.

The Lexington County Multi-Agency Narcotics Enforcement Team (NET) began investigating the sale of fentanyl in 2023 after several overdoses of the drug occurred, at least one of which was fatal.

They found that Dator was trafficking fentanyl, a highly toxic substance, in the form of pressed pills – counterfeit pills with the pharmaceutical labeling of oxycodone.

NET agents conducted an undercover buy on Dator in July 2023. Agents then conducted a traffic stop and found Dator to have over 500 pills in his car. Tests confirmed the pills were fentanyl.

Dator had previous convictions for robbery and criminal conspiracy.

Also sentenced was Christina Lindemuth, 52, who pleaded guilty to methamphetamine trafficking on July 26. District Judge Walton J. McLeod IV sentenced Lindemuth to 19 years in prison. Under state law, she is not eligible for parole.

Law enforcement became aware of drugs and paraphernalia found in a West Columbia hotel room after check-out in June 2022. Lindemuth attempted to gain entry to the room using a safe.

After Lexington County Sheriff's Department investigators obtained a search warrant for the room and safe, they found more than 200 grams of methamphetamine in the safe.

A third person, 39-year-old Bradford Scott Price, pleaded guilty to trafficking methamphetamine and fentanyl and was sentenced by McLeod to 9 years in prison. He, too, is not eligible for parole under state law.

In the fall of 2023, law enforcement, including West Columbia Police, initiated a drug investigation involving several controlled buys made by Price at a West Columbia residence. In November 2023, officers serving a search warrant discovered over 35 grams of methamphetamine and over 8 grams of fentanyl.

Price, who has multiple previous convictions for drug and property crimes, was on probation at the time of his arrest.

Dator, Lindemuth and Price were taken to the South Carolina Department of Corrections to begin serving their sentences, a press release said.

“The 11th District Attorney’s Office and the Lexington County NET Team will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who smuggle drugs into our community,” Assistant District Attorney Jordan Cox said in a press release.