Meech and his brother, Terry Lee Flenory, or "Southwest T", founded the criminal enterprise in Detroit during the late '80s. The Black Mafia Family dealt cocaine across the United States with hubs in Atlanta, Georgia and Los Angeles, California, making it easy to connect with the drug cartels south of the American border. Big Meech reportedly handled operations in Atlanta, while Southwest T was responsible for the L.A. branch of the organization. In 2000, the brothers founded BMF Entertainment in an effort to legitimize their business; soon, they became associated with a variety of acts, including Young Jeezy. The Drug Enforcement Administration arrested the brothers in 2005 and both pled guilty to charges of money laundering and drug trafficking. Each received a 30-year federal prison sentence.
Big Meech is serving out his term in Louisiana at the medium security Federal Correctional Institution, Pollock, while Southwest T is behind bars at Florida's Federal Correctional Institution, Coleman Low. The brothers are set for release in 2032. Newspaper editor Mara Shalhoup wrote a book on the Black Mafia Family, 2010's "BMF: The Rise and Fall of Big Meech and the Black Mafia Family". The brothers started off by selling $50 bags of cocaine in Detroit while in high school. The Black Mafia Family is alleged to have made more than $270 million. The Flenory brothers previously associated with some big names in hip-hop including E40, Jay-Z, Shawty Lo, T.I., and Fabolous. Big Meech reportedly adopted the name Big Herm while in prison. Other BMF artists have included Bleu DaVinci, Calico Jonez, Nu Money, Baby D, Fee Money, D-Boi, and more.
