Anderson, South Carolina – An Anderson man who had already served time for federal drug crimes is heading back to prison after authorities said a new investigation tied him to a large cocaine trafficking operation, firearms and tens of thousands of dollars in cash.
Mayo Pickens, 47, was sentenced in federal court to 176 months in prison, a term that comes out to more than 14 years and eight months.
According to the Department of Justice, the sentence was handed down by United States District Judge Jacquelyn D. Austin and will be followed by five years of court-ordered supervision. Under the federal system, there is no parole.
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The case grew out of a June 26, 2025, search at Pickens’s residence in Anderson. Investigators with the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office executed a federal search warrant at the home as part of the cocaine trafficking investigation, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina.
What they found inside, prosecutors said, pointed to more than street-level drug activity. Law enforcement recovered about 76 kilograms of cocaine from the residence. They also found multiple firearms, including several pistols and a rifle, along with more than $75,000 in cash.
Pickens was not arrested inside the home. Authorities said he was taken into custody in his vehicle, where he had a loaded revolver.
Investigators later determined that the cocaine found during the search was not the full scope of the activity. Prosecutors said Pickens was also responsible for another 24 kilograms of cocaine that he intended to traffic.
The sentence closes a case that placed Pickens back in federal court years after an earlier major conviction. He had previously received a 292-month sentence after federal convictions for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and money laundering. He was released from federal custody in 2021.
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This time, federal prosecutors presented the case as another serious drug trafficking matter involving a large quantity of cocaine, weapons and cash. The prison term means Pickens will remain in custody for nearly 15 years before beginning his five-year period of supervision.
The investigation was handled by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Lea Schoen is prosecuting the case.
