Tryon Mills received three years in federal prison today after pleading no contest to drug distribution.

Halifax County Sheriff Wes Tripp confirmed that U.S. District Judge W. Earl Britt sentenced Mills, who had broken terms of his original federal release upon his arrest by the sheriff's office in February.

Criminal investigation of this case was conducted by Agent D.C. Dickens of the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office.

On February 12 the sheriff’s office executed a search warrant where agents had received several drug complaints on Mills selling drugs.

During the investigation Mills was on federal supervised release.

“Through the efforts of Agent D.C. Dickens, Tyron Marquette Mills was arrested and confined to the Halifax County Detention Center on several drug counts,” Tripp said in a statement. “On February 20, a warrant for arrest was issued for Tyron M. Mills by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.”

Mills was later arrested and turned over to the U.S. Marshals.

Britt sentenced Mills to the statutory maximum of 36 months in the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Assistant United States Attorney Edward Gray handled the prosecution on behalf of the Eastern District of North Carolina.