MOULTRIE — A Colquitt County Superior Court jury Wednesday convicted Robert Lee Smith III, 30, of Moultrie of one count of cocaine sale.

Smith’s is one of 40 or so Colquitt County drug cases made in a Georgia Bureau of Investigation sweep conducted over six months beginning late last year.

Undercover agents had videotaped two contacts with Smith occurring Feb. 16 and 17. In the initial meeting, Smith had sold $40 of crack cocaine to the agents, but the video captured an image of only the lower half of his face and the deal went down out of sight of the camera inside a house at 617-B Ninth Ave. N.W.

The next day, agents went back and caught a good image of Smith on tape, but no transaction occurred. Smith’s defense centered on misidentification. He maintained the man in the first tape was not him.

GBI Special Agents Casey Smith and Rich Ortiz identified Smith as the man they met with Feb. 17 and as the perpetrator in the Feb. 16 drug buy.

They testified that of the 57 people who sold cocaine to them in Colquitt County during the operation, Smith was the only one who wore glasses. Assistant Public Defender Jon McClure tried to cast doubt by saying the agents had approached hundreds of people in Colquitt and Lowndes counties during that time and very well could have been relying on the video of Feb. 17 rather than actual recollection of the buy.

The agents testified they were certain that they bought crack from Smith.

Smith did not take the stand in his defense. McClure had wanted to show the jury scars he said were on the defendant’s arms that weren’t on the video. The prosecution balked and argued that “parading” the defendant would open him up for cross examination. Smith was adamant about not taking the stand.

During closing Assistant District Attorney Hamilton Garner appealed to the jury.

“Your job is to send a message that you will not tolerate cocaine or any other drug dealers in your town or in your county,” he said.

Superior Court Judge Richard Cowart will conduct a pre-sentencing investigation before sentencing Smith on Jan. 31 at 9:30 a.m. at the courthouse.

Garner is seeking recidivist treatment. This is Smith’s fourth felony conviction; therefore, if the judge takes the prosecution’s recommendation, the defendant, in theory, would not be eligible for early parole, the prosecutor said.

Smith was released in April 2004 after serving a 10-year stint in prison for aggravated assault and theft by receiving a stolen money order machine, Georgia Department of Corrections records said.

He’s currently on probation for a November 2004 conviction of burglary in Colquitt County, and he faces additional charges of kidnapping, simple battery, marijuana possession with intent to distribute, obstruction and disorderly conduct, court records said.