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Emery Chapman, 44, of Pleasantville, was sentenced to 21 years in state prison, the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office announced on Friday, Feb. 2. Chapman will be eligible for parole after nine years and once he's released, he'll have five years of "intensive parole supervision" under the No Early Release Act.
Prosecutors said Chapman gave heroin to 62-year-old Brian Whitted of Galloway Township in December 2018. Whitted then sold the heroin to 59-year-old Anthony Tamburelli.
Tamburelli overdosed in his Galloway Township home and died on Monday, Dec. 17, 2018. Investigators said the heroin was mixed with fentanyl.
Chapman pleaded guilty on Monday, Sept. 25, 2023 in two separate indictments. He was sentenced on Thursday, Feb. 1 for first-degree leader of a narcotics trafficking network, first-degree possession of heroin with intent to distribute, and first-degree strict liability for causing a drug-induced death.
Whitted pleaded guilty to causing a drug-induced death and he was sentenced to 10 years in state prison. He's eligible for parole after eight-and-a-half years and prison records said he's expected to be released on Friday, Sept. 1, 2028.
In 2020, investigators said Chapman was the kingpin of a drug-dealing network while he was in custody in Atlantic County and Georgia. He was accused of using contraband cellphones to buy drugs from Philadelphia and resell them in Atlantic County.
Investigators found 19,650 bags of heroin, weighing about 9 1/2 ounces. Three women pleaded guilty to charges related to the drug-dealing ring and they'll be sentenced in February 2024.
Tennille Lee, 47, of Atlantic City, and Teresa Lockhart, 37, of Millville, pleaded guilty to drug distribution charges. Prosecutors are recommending sentences of five years in state prison for them.
Ebony Chapman, 43, of Absecon, pleaded guilty to possession of heroin with intent to distribute. She's expected to receive probation.
The Liberty Mid-Atlantic High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration helped the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office with the case.
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