CHARLESTON COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – A man has been sentenced to 25 years in prison after he was found guilty of trafficking cocaine during a four-day trial held last week.

It stems from an investigation into an armed robbery that happened during the early morning hours of Nov. 10, 2020, at Vickery’s Restaurant on Shem Creek.

Emanuel Williams, a former employee, was accused of robbing two managers at gunpoint and firing a shot into the ground after forcing the managers to open a safe.

The investigation by the Mount Pleasant Police Department ultimately led officers to Williams, who was known to be staying at an apartment in North Charleston.

With help from the North Charleston Police Department, a search warrant was executed on the apartment and Williams was taken into custody.

While on scene, investigators found evidence related to the armed robbery and items that indicated narcotics activity.

“When Williams was searched, he had 14.17 grams of cocaine in his pocket along with $785 in cash. The NCPD Narcotics Unit took over the scene, executed a second search warrant related to the narcotics, and charged Williams with trafficking in cocaine,” said the Ninth Judicial Circuit Solicitor’s Office.

Williams is awaiting trial for the armed robbery and has not been found guilty in that case; however, he was found guilty of Trafficking in Cocaine 10-28 grams by a jury during a recent trial and was sentenced to 25 years by Judge Perry H. Gravely.

“Emanuel Williams is not a low-level drug dealer. This is a significant amount of cocaine coupled with items in his house that indicated he was manufacturing crack cocaine and selling drugs. Williams also has a violent crime history from Florida and a history of drug convictions. This is a third drug offense under the drug enhancement statute,” Assistant Solicitor Savas told the court during the sentencing.

Prosecutors also informed the court that while on bond, Williams violated the terms of his GPS-monitored house arrest. During previous hearings, Savas moved to have Williams’ bond revoked, which was ultimately granted.

Savas argued against crediting Williams for any time served on his house arrest based on the violations that were found. Due to the violations, Judge Gravely agreed and did not credit Williams for the time spent on house arrest.

“We take repeat offenders seriously. Judge Gravely’s sentence shows the importance of bond revocations and puts Defendants on notice that they will not always be given credit for time spent on house arrest where there were repeated violations of bond conditions,” said Savas.