NEW BERN, N.C. (WNCT) — Three men were recently sentenced in Craven County Superior Court after being convicted of drug charges.

Kenneth Ray Hacker II, 42, of Pollocksville; Bobby Joe Fields, 47, of New Bern; and Keandre Lemurl Gardner, 24, of New Bern, each received prison sentences.

Keandre Lemurl Gardner
Bobby Joe Fields
Kenneth Ray Hacker II

Hacker was sentenced as a habitual felon to a minimum of five years and eight months and a maximum of eight years in prison. He was also ordered to pay a $50,000 fine, a $600 laboratory analysis fee, court costs and attorney fees, and to forfeit $841 seized as part of the investigation to the Craven County Board of Education.

Hacker pled guilty to charges of trafficking heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl, possession with the intent to sell or deliver heroin, methamphetamine, fentanyl and other related drug possession charges. The charges stemmed from a probation search conducted by the Craven County Sheriff’s Office and the North Carolina Department of Probation and Parole of a residence in which Hacker was present. The search led to the recovery of over nine grams of a mixture containing methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, and other substances as well as a separate bag containing over 27 grams of methamphetamine.

Fields was sentenced as a habitual felon to a minimum of eight years and four months and a maximum of 11 years in prison, and ordered to pay a $1,200 laboratory analysis fee along with court costs.

Fields pled guilty to charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession with the intent to sell or deliver heroin and fentanyl, and trafficking heroin. The charges were a result of a series of probation searches conducted by the Craven County Sheriff’s Office, New Bern Police Department, and the North Carolina Department of Probation and Parole during which a total of over 32 grams of methamphetamine, over six grams of heroin, and a mixture containing heroin, fentanyl, and a fentanyl immediate precursor were recovered.

Gardner was sentenced to a minimum of five years and eight months and a maximum of seven years and seven months in prison, and ordered to pay a $50,000 fine, $1,200 laboratory analysis fee, court costs and attorney fees, and to forfeit money seized as part of the investigation to satisfy tax warrants.

Gardner pled guilty to charges of trafficking heroin and possession with the intent to sell or deliver cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and fentanyl, and resisting, delaying or obstructing an officer. The charges resulted from a traffic stop of a vehicle Gardner was driving where officers from the New Bern Police Department recovered two bags of marijuana, a bag containing over 13 grams of heroin, another bag containing crack cocaine, an air-powered pistol, and cash. On a later occasion, Gardner fled on foot from officers who saw him conduct a hand-to-hand transaction. The officers gave chase and apprehended him, recovering cash and plastic bag corners containing fentanyl.