The judge also ordered Hockaday, 31, of Roanoke Rapids to serve five years of supervised probation and pay restitution of $3,150.

Deeming Hockaday as a career offender enhanced his sentence, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

A Federal Grand Jury returned a Criminal Indictment on August 10. On January 5 Hockaday pled guilty to conspiring to distribute and possessing with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of crack cocaine and a quantity of cocaine.

In an ongoing investigation, law enforcement learned Hockaday was selling crack cocaine in the Roanoke Rapids area.

From February 10 to March 14 of last year, several controlled purchases were conducted in which he sold varying amounts of crack cocaine from his residence.

It was further learned that he had been selling illegal drugs since 2005.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office conducted investigation of this case. Special Assistant United States Attorney Glenn Perry was the assigned Prosecutor. Mr. Perry is a prosecutor with the Pitt County District Attorney’s Office. District Attorney Clark Everett has assigned him to the United States Attorney’s Office to prosecute federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force criminal matters. This has been made possible by a grant funded by the Governor’s Crime Commission.