A North Georgia gang member will spend the next two decades in prison after pleading guilty to drug trafficking charges in Cherokee County.
Joshua Thomas Gravley, 31, of McCaysville, pleaded guilty to violating Georgia’s street gang terrorism and prevention act, trafficking methamphetamine, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and unlawful conduct during a 911 call, prosecutors said.
He and two others were arrested in August 2018 after placing a false 911 call from an Acworth home, authorities said. When deputies arrived, they found 31 grams of meth, drug paraphernalia and a gun.
The other two people charged in the case — 23-year-old Robert Daniel Pope III and 21-year-old Kayla Marie Beasley — pleaded guilty in November, authorities said.
Credit: Cherokee County Sheriff's Office
Credit: Cherokee County Sheriff's Office
It’s unclear why they called 911 with meth in the house, but prosecutors said the trio hoped to lure law enforcement officials away from Pope’s Acworth home.
“Mr. Gravley asked Pope to call 911 to report a crime on Red Top Mountain with the purpose of leading police away from his location,” said Assistant District Attorney Kelly Chavis, who prosecuted the case. “Instead, his actions had the opposite effect.”
Prosecutors said Gravley is a member of the Ghost Face Gangsters, a prison-based street gang that has been in Georgia for about 20 years.
He was sentenced to 30 years, with the first 20 behind bars and the remainder on probation. He’s also prohibited from having contact with gang members or his co-defendants.
Pope was sentenced to two years in prison on drug and weapons charges, while Beasley was sentenced to three years on probation after pleading guilty to violating Georgia’s controlled substances act, authorities said.
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