Justin Stewart Goff, age 34, and Steven Allen Loan, age 36, pled guilty in Lexington County on Thursday, January 25, 2024. Goff pled guilty to Trafficking Fentanyl and Unlawful Conduct Towards a Child. Loan pled guilty to Trafficking Methamphetamine, second offense. Circuit Court Judge William P. Keesley sentenced both Goff and Loan to fifteen (15) years in the South Carolina Department of Corrections. Under South Carolina law, both levels of trafficking fentanyl and trafficking methamphetamine that were pled to are classified as violent, serious, and “no parole” offenses.

In the early months of 2023, investigators with the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department Multi-Agency Narcotics Enforcement Team (“NET”) began investigating possible drug activity around the Peachtree Place apartments in the Columbia area of Lexington County. The investigation revealed that Goff was dealing fentanyl from his shared apartment with Loan.

On August 10, 2023, NET agents arrived at the apartment to arrest Goff and search the home for more evidence of the drug activity. Along with Goff and Loan, two more adults and a three-year-old child were found living in the apartment. Inside, investigators discovered over 13 grams of fentanyl and over 10 grams of methamphetamine along with several items used in the sale of drugs. All of the drugs found were in easily accessible areas for the young child, including the methamphetamine that was stored inside the young child’s dollhouse.

Assistant Solicitor Jordan Cox prosecuted this case on behalf of the Eleventh Circuit Solicitor’s Office. These cases were investigated by the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department Narcotics Enforcement Team.

This case represents the continued efforts of the Eleventh Circuit Solicitor’s Office and local law enforcement to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who choose to expose our most vulnerable residents to dangerous drugs, such as fentanyl and methamphetamine.

Goff and Loan both have prior convictions for drugs. They both have been transported to the South Carolina Department of Corrections to serve their sentences.