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A Covington County jury convicted Oddesius “Nuke” Bryant, 34, of Andalusia, this week for trafficking methamphetamine, second degree possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, and for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

After hearing evidence over two days, the 10-man, two-woman jury deliberated for less than 40 minutes before finding Bryant guilty.

Assistant District Attorney Nikki Stephens prosecuted the case for the State.

“Oddesius Bryant spent too much of his adult life dealing drugs. His actions in doing so have, without question, affected countless people. I am glad the jury listened to the evidence in this case and thankful for their verdicts holding him accountable,” Stephens said.

Bryant was charged after a Drug Task Force investigation into illegal narcotics activity at 605 Eighth Avenue in Andalusia began in July 2020. Evidence at trial showed that, through surveillance of the property and numerous interactions with visitors to that residence, agents obtained a search warrant for the property. The search warrant was executed by the Covington County Incident Response Team and Drug Task Force about 5:30 a.m. on August 13, 2020. At that time, Oddesius Bryant was found in the driver’s seat of a Ford F-150 parked in the driveway. Of note, agents found a wallet sized photo of Bryant and a child propped inside the gauge cluster of the truck.  Agents also found trafficking weight methamphetamine, three bags of marijuana, three sets of digital scales, numerous plastic bags used for packaging, and two loaded firearms — a 9mm pistol and a .380 pistol — inside the truck with Bryant.

“Our local police and investigators work tirelessly to ensure our safety and, most of the time, we never even know they are working on our behalf,” said District Attorney Walt Merrell. “These guys ran surveillance for several weeks.  They made contact with people leaving that house, they conducted interviews, they executed numerous search warrants, and they ultimately put together a great case and took another drug dealer off the streets.  I’m thankful for their hearts of service, and thankful that the jury was attentive throughout the trial, and saw much of the same thing I see.”

Circuit Judge Lex Short presided over the case and set a sentencing hearing for May 30, 2024, at 9 a.m. Bryant has five prior felony convictions and will be sentenced under the Habitual Felony Offender Act.  His minimum sentence for the trafficking conviction, a Class A felony, is life in prison. Bryant is already serving a 30-year sentence for other drug charges he pled guilty to in a case that arose after this one.

Stephens thanked the Covington County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Investigator Cody Holmes and Andalusia Police Department Narcotics Investigator Tyler Patterson for their work on the case. Stephens also thanked District Attorney’s Office Chief Investigator Nickey Carnley for his assistance in the prosecution.