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A Selma man will spend at least eight years in prison after pleading guilty Monday to selling a teenager the drugs that killed her.
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Isaiah Lathomas DaPaul Watson, 27, was charged with death by distribution in the August 2025 death of Alesha Meshaw, 19, of Four Oaks, The News & Observer previously reported.
Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Thomas H. Lock sentenced Watson to a minimum of eight years and maximum of 10 years and eight months in prison, the Johnston County District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday.
Meshaw was found dead at a friend’s home after overdosing on counterfeit oxycodone pills, The N&O reported in October. The state crime lab found the pills actually contained fentanyl; carfentanil, a synthetic opioid “much more potent than fentanyl”; and ANPP, “a direct precursor to fentanyl and acetylfentanyl,” according to search warrants in the case.
Meshaw’s autopsy found she died from a fentanyl and carfentanil overdose. Her death was ruled an accident.
Meshaw’s boyfriend told police she’d struggled with substance use, and investigators found texts on her phone indicating she’d met with Watson the day before her death to buy $50 of “blues,” according to search warrants.
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Watson was arrested in Roanoke, Virginia, last September after hiding out at his girlfriend’s house, search warrants show. He’d previously served time in prison in a 2020 home invasion in Johnston County and also had pending charges there at the time of Meshaw’s death, court records indicate.
Johnston County District Attorney Jason Waller said in the release he was grateful for law enforcement’s work to seek justice for Meshaw.
“Death by distribution cases present unique challenges for prosecution,” Waller said in the email. “The most important witness to the drug transaction is no longer with us, and other witnesses involved in this type of crime are often reluctant to cooperate.”
Meshaw, also known as “Meme” by loved ones, was described by family members in a GoFundMe as a “bright soul [who] never let anything get her down.”
“Our heart goes out to Aleisha’s [sic] family, and I hope this outcome will help them find solace,” said Assistant District Attorney Keith Gordon, who prosecuted the case, in the release. “Aleisha [sic] was a very young woman, loved by many, whose life was lost to a senseless act of greed.”
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