KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A man is facing decades in prison after he and another person were prosecuted by the Knox County District Attorney’s Career Gang Unit.
Bradley Donovan Johnson, 39, and Natia Natice Kelso, 26, were found guilty of possession with intent to sell cocaine, fentanyl, and marijuana, possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, maintaining a drug dwelling, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Johnson faces a minimum of 72 years in prison due to his 13 prior convictions, while Kelso faces a minimum sentence of 18 years. They are set to be sentenced on June 24.
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During the trial, the prosecutors explained that on April 23, 2025, detectives with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office and Knoxville Police Department were conducting surveillance in a joint drug investigation. They followed Johnson to an apartment on Washington Avenue, and when a marked KPD vehicle attempted to stop him, he ran away. He was quickly apprehended, and a KCSO K9 unit alerted to the odor of drugs in the vehicle.
According to the DA’s office, detectives found 116 grams of marijuana in the vehicle. Inside Johnson and Kelso’s home, detectives found 337 grams of fentanyl, 488 grams of cocaine, 644 grams of marijuana, a rifle, and a handgun.
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“These offenders have been found guilty, and these drugs have been removed from the streets because of the cooperation of the law enforcement agencies who worked together to investigate this case,” said DA Charme Allen…