Nearby: Drug Dealer Sentenced

A Marietta man has been sentenced to prison for drug trafficking out of a Kennesaw area apartment complex, the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office announced Thursday.

Nikita Tayaneka Winn, 43, was convicted of charges of heroin trafficking, possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, and firearms possession offenses by a Cobb County jury on Wednesday, the announcement said.

Winn was arrested in September of 2013 by Marietta police who were watching the Crestmont Apartments near Town Center Mall at the behest of the complex managers, who were concerned about possible drug trafficking occurring on their property. Police spotted a would-be drug buyer, which gave them cause to search Winn’s room. Inside, police found drugs, a knife, a gun, scales, and $3,500 in small bills, according to the announcement.

Following his conviction Wednesday, Cobb County Superior Court Judge Mary Staley sentenced Winn to 65 years in prison and ordered him to pay a $1 million fine on Thursday morning. This is Winn’s sixth felony conviction, said the announcement.

ADA Maurice Brown told jurors that drug trafficking was nothing but, “destruction brought onto this community and others all over this country by the work of people like Nikita Winn. He’s responsible for wrecking lives and neighborhoods with the scourge of illegal drugs. It’s time to do something about it, and that’s why we’re here,”