Southern District of West Virginia

Huntington, W.Va. –  A Williamson woman was sentenced today to three years and six months of federal probation for obtaining prescription drugs by fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin.  Amy Shantel Hatfield, 37, pleaded guilty in April of 2013 before Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers in Huntington federal court.  Hatfield admitted that between June of 2012 and August of 2012, she obtained lisdexamfetamine and amphetamine, dangerous and addictive prescription drugs, by filling fraudulent prescriptions written for someone else.   

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration Diversion Task Force.  Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams handled the prosecution.

This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

Charleston, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that Richard A. Mullins, John Freddie Joe Johnson, and Joseph James Salmons entered guilty pleas today in federal court to charges relating to the distribution of oxycodone in Lincoln County.      

Beginning in January of 2013, the Huntington Violent Crime and Drug Task Force made a series of controlled oxycodone buys from Richard Mullins and his associates.  Today, Richard Mullins, 49, of West Hamlin, admitted that on January 13, 2013, he sold 5 oxycodone 30 mg pills to a confidential informant working with the law enforcement.  Mullins met the informant on the parking lot of the Blossom Junction flower shop in West Hamlin and conducted the drug deal from his car.  Mullins also admitted to other drug sales in Lincoln County. 

John Freddie Joe Johnson, 37, also of West Hamlin admitted that on February 8, 2013, he assisted Mullins and Joseph James Salmons with the sale of oxycodone to a confidential informant outside of Johnson’s residence in West Hamlin, Lincoln County. 

Joseph James Salmons, 24, of Hamlin admitted that on February 13, 2013, he and Mullins sold a confidential information five oxycodone 30 mg pills.  The informant entered Mullins’ home in West Hamlin, Lincoln County and met with Mullins.  The informant handed Mullins $200.00 for the oxycodone.  Mullins handed the $200.00 to Salmons and Salmons handed the informant the oxycodone pills.  Salmons also admitted to other drug sales in Lincoln County.

All three men face up to 20 years imprisonment when they are sentenced on July 8, 2014 by United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr.

The Huntington Violent Crime and Drug Task Force investigated the case.  Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman is in charge of the prosecution. 

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Richard Hughes, 54, of St. Albans, W. Va. was sentenced today to 46 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release,  U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced.   Hughes previously pleaded guilty in January of 2014 to conspiracy to distribute marijuana.  Hughes admitted that from at least August of 2010 through February of 2012, he received marijuana from Robin Slater, a large-scale marijuana trafficker, and sold the marijuana throughout the Southern District of West Virginia.

Hughes made significant profits from the sale of marijuana and previously forfeited approximately $77,000 in cash and several thousand dollars’ worth of vehicles and equipment that he admitted were proceeds of drug distribution.

Slater previously pleaded guilty to several federal charges, including conspiracy to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana, and was sentenced to 35 years in prison. 

The West Virginia State Police, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations and the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Haley Bunn handled the prosecution. The sentenced was imposed by Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers in Huntington.

Huntington, W.Va. – A Huntington man who conspired with others to distribute heroin from the summer of 2013 to the end of 2013, pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin.  Brandon S. Keaton, 28, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute heroin before Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers in Huntington.

On December 30, 2013, Keaton sold heroin to a confidential informant in the 1400 block of Jefferson Avenue in West Huntington.  After the sale, Keaton entered Apartment #2 at 1416 Jefferson Avenue.  The following day, December 31, 2013, officers with the Huntington Police Department searched the apartment where they found and seized more than 400 grams of heroin and $12,349 in cash.  Keaton was arrested on January 26, 2014, and admitted to officers that he had been engaged in a conspiracy to distribute heroin from the West Huntington apartment for over six months.

Keaton faces up to 20 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on July 14, 2014.

The Huntington Police Department Special Emphasis Unit conducted the investigation with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration.  Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams is in charge of the prosecution. 

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

DRUGS, GUN AND SCALES SEIZED FROM HUNTINGTON RESIDENCE

Huntington, W.Va. – Alton Tribble, 37, of Detroit, Michigan pled guilty today in federal court in Huntington to a single count of possession with intent to distribute heroin.  On December 26, 2013, members of the Huntington Police Department executed a search warrant at 917 21st Street in Huntington and seized 18 individually wrapped baggies of a substance that field tested positive for heroin, a .32 caliber semi-automatic pistol, and a set of digital scales. That residence was used by Tribble to store heroin for resale in Huntington.  Tribble faces up to 20 years imprisonment and a $1 million fine when he is sentenced on July 14, 2014.

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

Defendant has prior conviction for first degree robbery

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Charleston woman who pawned her ex-husband’s pistol pleaded guilty today to a federal firearm charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin.  Kristie Dorado, 29, also known as Kristie Jo Carter, pleaded guilty in federal court in Charleston to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

On October 8, 2013, Ms. Dorado pawned a Glock, Model 23, .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol at a Charleston pawn shop.  Dorado was prohibited from possessing the gun following her conviction for first degree robbery in February of 2009 in Kanawha County Circuit Court.  Dorado faces up to 10 years in federal prison when she is sentenced on July 16, 2014.

The Marmet Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives conducted the investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks is in charge of the prosecution.

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – A Barboursville man who admitted he distributed heroin was sentenced in federal court today, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced.  DeMarco D. Calvin, 31, of Barboursville, West Virginia, previously pleaded guilty in December of 2013 to heroin distribution.  Calvin admitted that he sold several hundred grams of heroin in the Barboursville area over the past few years.  At today’s hearing, Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers sentenced Calvin to 63months of federal imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised release.

This case was investigated by the Huntington Violent Crime/Drug Task Force, which is comprised of officers from the FBI, Cabell County Sheriff’s Department, and the Huntington and Barboursville Police Departments.   Special Assistant United States Attorney Sharon M. Frazier handled the prosecution.

This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

DRUGS, GUN AND SCALES SEIZED FROM HUNTINGTON RESIDENCE

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – A Barboursville man who participated in a marijuana conspiracy from 2012 to the summer of 2013, pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin.  Brandon L. Madden, 33, pleaded guilty in federal court in Huntington to conspiracy to distribute marijuana.  In July of 2013, United States Postal Inspectors intercepted a package containing controlled substances that was to be delivered to Madden.  When confronted by Inspectors, Madden admitted his role in a drug conspiracy in the Cabell County area.  In addition to pleading guilty, Madden will forfeit $16,640.00 in cash, and a 2013 Dodge Durango seized by the Postal Service in connection with this case.

Madden faces up to 10 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on July 24, 2013.

This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspector with the assistance of the Huntington Violent Crime/Drug Task Force which is coordinated by the FBI.  The prosecution is being handled by Special Assistant United States Attorney Sharon M. Frazier.

***MEDIA ADVISORY***

Commissioner Jim Rubenstein and Others will be Recognized for Assistance to Victims   
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia, along with various federal, state and local crime victim advocates, will host prelude events in recognition of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week on MONDAY, APRIL 7, 2014.  West Virginia Division of Corrections Commissioner Jim Rubenstein and others will be recognized for their efforts to assist victims of crime.  This event is being held in conjunction with the nationwide observance honoring National Crime Victims’ Rights Week (NCVRW), which begins on April 6.  Monday’s ceremony also marks the 14th Annual Operation Reach Out.  Operation Reach Out is a collaborative group of federal, state and local organizations that was formed to raise awareness for NCVRW in West Virginia.  This year’s theme is “30 Years: Restoring the Balance of Justice.”

WHO:             U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin
Operation Reach Out committee members
Representatives of local and statewide advocacy programs
Survivors of crime
Various federal, state and local officials

Awards Recipients:  Jim Rubenstein, WV Division of Corrections Commissioner
Dave Ballard, Mt. Olive Correctional Complex Warden                   
West Virginia Correctional Industries
Joyce Yedlosky, Team Coordinator for the West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence
The Counseling Connection

WHERE:      Robert C. Byrd United States Courthouse
300 Virginia Street, East
Fifth FloorCharleston, WV

WHEN:        MONDAY, April 7, 2014
TIME:          A brief reception at NOON, will precede the ceremony and awards presentations.  The media is invited and encouraged to attend. 

***MEDIA ADVISORY***

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin will deliver remarks during the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network’s first statewide conference at the Lakeview Resort in Morgantown, W,Va. on Friday, April 4, 2014 at 9:00 a.m.  The conference, attended by approximately 160 professionals, will promote best practices, updates and trends in the child abuse field.    
Goodwin will discuss various topics, including an update on a pilot project aimed at preventing and mitigating the impact of trauma on children exposed to violence – “Handle With Care” – and other key issues that are critical to a collaborative response by law enforcement, schools and mental health professionals to crimes against children.

The West Virginia Child Advocacy Network (WVCAN) 2014 Conference, held April 3 – 4, 2014, is a partnership among WV CAN, West Virginia Children’s Justice Task Force, Sisters of Joseph Health & Wellness Foundation, Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.    
For additional information, visit  West Virginia Child Advocacy Network. 

WHO: U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin
WHAT: West Virginia Child Advocacy Network 2014 Conference
WHEN: Friday, April 4, 2014
TIME: 9:00 a.m. 
WHERE:  Lakeview Resort, Morgantown

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A St. Albans, W.Va. man pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin.  Alva Osborne, 46, pleaded guilty in federal court in Charleston to distributing methamphetamine.  As part of the plea, Osborne admitted that on four separate occasions from November of 2012 through December of 2013, he sold quantities of methamphetamine to a confidential informant working with the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team. Osborne also admitted that he distributed large quantities of methamphetamine to other individuals who were not cooperating with law enforcement.  Osborne faces up to 20 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on July 21, 2014.

The investigation was conducted by the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team and the Charleston Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Haley Bunn is in charge of the prosecution.

U. S. Attorney Booth Goodwin and Huntington Police Chief W. H. “Skip” Holbrook are pleased to announce that the opiate abuse prevention film, "Equal Opportunity Destroyer" or "E.O.D." has received a prestigious bronze Telly award.  With nearly 12,000 entries from all 50 states and numerous countries, this is truly an honor. 

The "EOD"  video includes interviews with recovering addicts, treatment professionals and others with the aim of laying out the real-life risks and consequences of opiate prescription drug and heroin use.  The educational video was developed through a partnership between the U. S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia and the Huntington Police Department.  It was funded by a grant from the West Virginia Division of Justice and Community Services and produced by Trifecta Productions, LLC,

U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin praised the work of Trifecta Productions.  "The folks at Trifecta did a remarkable job of capturing the power of the real life stories in a film that hits hard on the message that opiate abuse and its tragic consequences can happen to anyone.  It is our hope that some of the young people who view the video will make better decisions regarding opiates and other drugs."

The video can be viewed on the website of the U.S. Attorney's Office, SDWV, at http://www.youtube.com/user/USAOSDWV, the EOD website at www.eodwv.com or the WV Safe Schools website at www.wvsafeschools.com.

If you would like to arrange for U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin to speak to your school or community group and present the film, please call 304-345-2200.

(Click this link for a photograph of Joe Murphy, Trifecta Productions, LLC (left) and Chief W. H. “Skip” Holbrook (right) with the Telly Award.)

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Charleston man who admitted possessing three stolen firearms was sentenced today, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced.  Joshua Caudill, 28, of Charleston, West Virginia, previously pleaded guilty in February of 2013.  Caudill admitted that he and Cody Fuller, 27, also of Charleston, West Virginia, burglarized a home on Tilbury Lane in St. Albans in November of 2012 and stole three firearms.  Caudill was sentenced to 76 months imprisonment, 70 months for the possession of stolen firearms, and an additional six months for violating the conditions of his supervised release.  Fuller pleaded guilty to his role in the offense and was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison in July of 2013.

The arrests of Caudill and Fuller were the result of investigations into a string of burglaries in Kanawha County that occurred in October and November 2012.  Various agencies, including the Charleston Police Department and the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Department, conducted the investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks handled the prosecution.  The sentence was imposed by United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr.

Charleston, W. Va. -  Lucas R. Lynch, 31, of St. Albans, West Virginia plead guilty today to the federal charge of felon in possession of firearms, announced United States Attorney Booth Goodwin. Lynch, who is prohibited from possessing guns due to a prior felony conviction in 2003, conspired with Keary Drake of Charleston to sell stolen firearms and split the proceeds.  In November of 2013, Lynch and Drake drove to St. Albans where they picked up two stolen guns, a rifle and a shotgun.  On their way from St. Albans, police attempted to stop the car for a traffic violation.  Lynch failed to stop and attempted to evade capture.  In the process, Drake was injured while trying to jump from Lynch’s moving vehicle.  Lynch continued to flee from police until his car engine malfunctioned.  When questioned, Drake and Lynch admitted their participation in the illegal gun scheme, and acknowledged that they were not permitted to possess firearms. 

Lynch faces a maximum penalty of up to ten years in prison when he is sentenced on July 9, 2014.   Drake previously plead guilty on February 24, 2014 and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 2, 2014.  

The St. Albans Police Department conducted the investigation, assisted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms and Tobacco Enforcement.  AUSA Erik Goes is handling the prosecution.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Shannon Collins, 41, of  Logan, West Virginia, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury sitting in Charleston for committing thirty-five counts of mail fraud, access device fraud, social security fraud and aggravated identity theft while employed by the Logan office of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR).  According to the indictment, Collins, also known as Shannon Varney, worked as a case worker in the Logan DHHR office in 2009.   Collins is charged with using the social security numbers of two deceased individuals to establish false accounts through which she could claim benefits.  Collins then accessed the accounts, filed false claims and had benefits mailed to her post office box.  Collins also mailed herself two EBT Cards, formerly known as the food stamp program, which she used until December of 2009.  The indictment alleges that from April of 2009 to December of 2009, Collins defrauded DHHR out of $52,000.

If convicted, Collins faces up to 20 years in prison for each count of mail fraud, and two years of mandatory incarceration for each count of aggravated identity theft.  She also faces up to five years incarceration for the misuse of social security numbers and ten years for the access device fraud. 

The investigation was conducted by the Office of the Inspector General for DHHR, assisted by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Social Security Administration, and the United States Department of Agriculture.  Assistant United States Attorney Erik  S. Goes is in charge of the prosecution. 

Note: The charge contained in the indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Charleston, W.Va. –  U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced that Kenneth Rush, 30, of Georgia, plead guilty today in federal court in Charleston to possession with intent to distribute cocaine base, also known as “crack,” a Schedule II controlled substance.  On Wednesday, May 23, 2012, Rush was found in an apartment in Cross Lanes, West Virginia, after agents of the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT) received a tip that drugs were being sold from that location.  During a subsequent search of the apartment, MDENT agents seized a substance from a kitchen cabinet that was later tested and proved to be crack.  Rush admitted that the crack was his, that he obtained it from a source in Columbus, Ohio, and that he transported it to the Cross Lanes apartment with the intent of selling it in the local community.  Rush further admitted to having already sold some of the crack prior to the agents’ arrival.

Rush faces up to 20 years imprisonment and a $1,000,000.00 fine when he is sentenced on July 30, 2014.

Huntington, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that Kimberly Gayle Hamlett, 35, of Huntington, West Virginia was sentenced in federal court in Huntington by Chief Judge Robert C. Chambers to four years of imprisonment for distribution of heroin.  Hamlett, who pled guilty in November of 2013, admitted that she sold heroin to a confidential informant on May 27, 2013.  The sale took place near the Speedway located at 16th Street and 6th Avenue in Huntington.  As part of her plea, Hamlett also admitted that she was involved in a conspiracy to sell oxycodone pills and heroin for other individuals. That conspiracy lasted from at least 2011 through August 8, 2013. Ms. Hamlett made deliveries of drugs and provided places for others to store and sell drugs. Firearms were also kept at those locations.

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

Huntington, W.Va. – A Huntington, West Virginia, man pleaded guilty today in federal court to charges of being a convicted felon in possession of firearms and of selling heroin, announced U.S. Attorney, Booth Goodwin.  Antonio Michael Smith, 31, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers in Huntington.    

On September 24, 2013, Smith used two firearms to shoot six people in the Northcott Court neighborhood of Huntington.  Smith was a convicted felon and could not legally possess any firearms, having been previously convicted in 2001 of robbery in Ohio.  He was also convicted in 2010 in Cabell County, West Virginia, of unlawful wounding and attempt to commit a felony.  Additionally, Smith pleaded guilty today to selling heroin in Huntington on February 6, 2013.

Smith fled the state after the September 2013 shooting and was eventually located and arrested in New York by the FBI.

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.  The investigation was conducted by the Huntington Violent Crime/Drug Task Force, Huntington Police Department, DEA and the FBI.  SAUSA Sharon M. Frazier is handling the prosecution.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – William Edward Richmond, 31, of Charleston, West Virginia, was sentenced to federal prison today for selling cocaine base, also known as “crack” on Charleston’s West Side, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced.  On June 6, 7, and 11, of 2013, drug investigators used an informant to buy crack from Richmond near the intersection of Park and Central Avenues in Charleston.  Richmond pleaded guilty in December of 2013 to the drug distribution charges.   United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. sentenced Richmond to 48 months imprisonment, 30 months for the crack distribution, and an additional 18 months for violating the conditions of his supervised release.

The case was prosecuted as part of the Charleston area’s Drug Market Intervention (DMI) initiative. The DMI initiative was launched in February 2012 by Charleston Police Chief Brent Webster and U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin, in collaboration with other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, as well as leaders representing several West Side community organizations. The DMI initiative was initiated in Charleston as a strategic problem-solving effort aimed at closing down open-air drug markets that breed crimes of violence and disorder.  The Charleston Police Department Special Enforcement Unit conducted the investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks handled the prosecution.

BECKLEY, W.Va. – Cayla Lindsay, age 20, was sentenced today in Beckley, West Virginia, by United States District Court Judge Irene C. Berger to three years of probation, and 100 hours of community service.  Lindsay previously plead guilty in December 2013 to distributing oxycodone, a powerful prescription pain killer.  Lindsay admitted that on April 10, 2013, she sold several oxycodone pills to a confidential informant (CI) who was working with the Beckley Police Department Drug Unit.  The drug deal took place at a restaurant located on S. Eisenhower Drive, Beckley.  

This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The United States Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin.

BECKLEY, W.Va. – Amber Green, age 33, was sentenced today in Beckley, West Virginia, by United States District Court Judge Irene C. Berger to five months imprisonment, and a three year term of supervised release.  Lindsay previously plead guilty in November of 2013 to distributing oxycodone, a powerful prescription pain killer.  Lindsay admitted that on April 24, 2013, she sold several oxycodone pills to a confidential informant (CI) who was working with the Beckley Police Department Drug Unit and the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department.  The drug deal took place at a residence on Wildwood Avenue, Beckley. 

This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The United States Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin.

BECKLEY, W.Va. – Rachel Saunders, 32, was sentenced today in Beckley, West Virginia, by United States District Court Judge Irene C. Berger to three years of probation, and 100 hours of community service.  Saunders previously plead guilty in November of 2013 to distributing oxycodone, a powerful and addictive prescription pain killer.  Saunders admitted that on March 26, 2013, she sold several oxycodone pills to a confidential informant (CI) who was working with the Beckley Police Department Drug Unit and the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department. The drug deal took place at a local video lottery establishment on North Eisenhower Drive, Beckley. 

This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The United States Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin.

Defendant was previously convicted of sexually assaulting a ten year old

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. –A 66-year-old Cabell County resident was convicted of possessing and attempting to distribute child pornography after a three-day bench trial in Huntington, West Virginia, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today.  Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers found that John D. Hayes, of Huntington, West Virginia, knowingly possessed child pornography on computer equipment located in his residence and attempted to distribute child pornography via a file-sharing program. 

The investigation began when it was discovered that child pornography was being shared via Frostwire between March 17 and April 28, 2012.  The associated IP address was traced back to the Huntington residence of Hayes.  Computer evidence subsequently seized from the Hayes’ home pursuant to a search warrant executed on May 24, 2012, including a portable USB drive, was forensically analyzed and determined to contain images and videos of child pornography.   The forensic examination further revealed that one of the computers possessed by Hayes was loaded with the Frostwire program and had a unique user identification number (known as a GUID) that matched the GUID found to be sharing child pornography in March and April of 2012. 

Hayes was previously convicted in the circuit court of Putnam County, West Virginia, in 1979 for two counts of second degree sexual assault, one of which involved a 10-year-old female. 

Hayes faces a minimum mandatory 15 years and up to 60 years imprisonment, as well as a lifetime of supervised release.  He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 7, 2014, in Huntington, West Virginia.

The investigation of Hayes was conducted by the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, with the assistance of the Huntington Police Department and the West Virginia State Police.  Assistant United States Attorneys Jennifer Rada and Lisa Johnston were in charge of the prosecution.   

This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood.  In February 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims.

Defendant had previously pled guilty to distribution of heroin

Charleston, W.Va. – Chandra Ross, 30, of Charleston, West Virginia, pled guilty today in federal court to possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and to possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.   In August of 2013, a federal grand jury sitting in Charleston, returned a three-count indictment against Ross charging her with possession with intent to distribute heroin, possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.  Ross entered into a plea agreement, in which she agreed to plead guilty to the heroin charge and cooperate with law enforcement officers.  In return, the United States agreed to dismiss the two gun charges.  Ross, however, failed to provide the required cooperation and thereby breached the plea agreement.  As a result, the district court ruled that the United States was no longer bound by the plea agreement and was not obligated to dismiss the remaining counts in the indictment.  Ross pled guilty to those two remaining counts today.

Based on her plea today, Ross faces a mandatory minimum five years imprisonment, and up to life imprisonment, on the charge of possessing the firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  Her conviction on that charge mandates that the sentence be consecutive to (added on to) the sentence on the other drug and gun charges.   Sentencing has been scheduled for June 26, 2014.

The investigation was conducted by the Kanawha Bureau of Investigations.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Chapmanville, W.Va. man who sold the powerful prescription painkiller oxymorphone, commonly sold under the brand name Opana, pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Carl Tomblin, 50, pleaded guilty to distribution of oxymorphone before United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. in Charleston.

On five separate occasions in December of 2013, Tomblin sold oxymorphone to a confidential informant in exchange for cash. Tomblin admitted to law enforcement that he had been purchasing and distributing oxymorphone from approximately May of 2013 through January of 2014.

Tomblin tested positive for the drug Benzodiazepine, commonly known as Valium or Xanax.  As a result, the court ordered Tomblin released on home confinement with electronic monitoring.  Tomblin faces up to 20 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on June 25, 2014. 

The investigation was conducted by the U.S. 119 Task Force and the West Virginia State Police. Assistant United States Attorney Haley Bunn is handling the prosecution.

The prosecution is part of an ongoing effort by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.

Charleston, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that Steven Anthony Major, 49, of Barboursville, W.Va. was arrested on Friday, March 21, 2014 on a federal criminal complaint alleging that he made violent threats against United States Senator Joe Manchin and his family members.

According to the complaint, which was unsealed today,  Major made multiple calls to the Charleston, W.Va. and Washington, D.C. offices of Senator Manchin. During the calls, Major identified himself and made violent threats targeting Senator Manchin and his family members.

Major’s initial appearance on the arrest is scheduled for 2 p.m. in front of Magistrate Judge Dwane L. Tinsley, Fifth Floor, Robert C. Byrd United States Courthouse, Charleston, W.Va.  Major faces up to 10 years in prison, if convicted.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the West Virginia State Police. Assistant United States Attorney Haley Bunn is in charge of the prosecution.

Click here for a link to the complaint.

Note: The charge contained in the complaint is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Huntington, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced that Lindsey Alyn Thacker, 29, of Huntington, West Virginia, was sentenced today in United States District Court by Chief Judge Robert C. Chambers to three years imprisonment for maintaining a residence for the purpose of distributing heroin.  Beginning in the summer of 2012 and continuing into the summer of 2013, Thacker allowed drug dealers from Detroit, Michigan to store and sell heroin at her residence on 11th Avenue in Huntington.  She also permitted addicts to use heroin in her home.  In return for facilitating this illegal drug activity, Thacker received heroin for personal use.

During a search of the residence, agents located approximately .3 grams of heroin and over $1000.00 from drug sales. Thacker also admitted that she had made six to seven trips to Detroit to obtain heroin and/or crack cocaine from an individual she knew as Zack or Zane, later identified as Zachary Merritt.  Merritt, along with others, were charged and have pled guilty for their roles in trafficking heroin in Huntington.

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. .  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

Huntington, W.Va. –  United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced that Quincy Ray Johnson, 34, of Huntington, West Virginia was sentenced today by Chief Judge Robert C. Chambers to six years and six months imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute oxycodone, a dangerous and addictive pain killer.  On April 17, 2013, an Express Mail Parcel was intercepted by United States Postal Inspectors after a specially trained police dog indicated the presence of drugs.  A search warrant was obtained for the package and when it was opened, agents found 1260 oxycodone pills, and approximately 1 ounce of Molly (MDMA), a street drug akin to “Ecstasy.”  After the inspection, the drugs were returned to the original packaging and delivered to 1737 10th Avenue, Huntington, West Virginia. A black male, later identified as Johnson, answered the door and accepted the delivery.  A search warrant was subsequently executed and the package was recovered.  When questioned by authorities, Johnson admitted that he expected and received the package containing the illegal drugs.  Johnson also admitted receiving four other packages through the mail, each containing approximately 300 oxycodone 30-mg pills. Johnson plead guilty in September of 2013

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced that four defendants convicted of drug offenses were sentenced by Senior United States District Judge David A.Faber in federal court in Bluefield today.  Richard Travis Robinette, Jr., 40, of Garland, West Virginia, was sentenced to six years in prison for distributing oxycodone pills.  Robinette pled guilty in November of 2013, admitting that on September 16, 2010, he distributed ten oxycodone pills to a person cooperating with law enforcement authorities.  The transaction took place at or near Avondale, West Virginia.  Mr. Robinette admitted that he was involved in the distribution of a total of 400 oxycodone pills.  In a related case, Tobi LaDawn Jones, 25, of Avondale, was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment for using a telephone to commit a felony drug offense.  Jones pled guilty in November, admitting that she had used a telephone to set up the distribution of 13 oxycodone pills by an individual to a person cooperating with authorities.  The drug transaction also took place near Avondale.  Ms. Jones also admitted to being involved in additional drug transactions.  The cases were investigated by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration.

Faith Akers, 45, of Princeton, was sentenced to one year and one month for distributing hydromorphone pills.  Akers pled guilty in November of 2013, when she admitted that on May 15, 2013, she distributed two hydromorphone pills to a person cooperating with authorities near Princeton.  She further admitted that she was involved in distributing two hydromorphone pills on May 14 and one hydromorphone pill on May 15, 2013. 

Terry Testerman, 61, of Bluewell, was sentenced to nine months of time served for distributing oxycodone pills.  Testerman pled guilty in September of 2013, admitting that on February 3, 2012,  he distributed two oxycodone pills to a person assisting law enforcement authorities in Bluewell.  In addition, Mr. Testerman admitted that he distributed approximately five more oxycodone pills at various times. 

The Akers and Testerman cases were investigated by the West Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations and the Southern Regional Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, and were prosecuted under the Bluefield Pill Initiative.  All of the cases were prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U. S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.

Lawyer swindled more than $1 Million dollars from clients and investors

Charleston, W.Va. – Lawyer Harold “Hal” Albertson, 65, was sentenced today in Charleston, West Virginia, by United States District Court Judge Thomas E. Johnston to two years in federal prison and ordered to pay more than a million dollars in restitution to former clients, investors, and the Internal Revenue Service.  Albertson previously pleaded guilty to evading over $100,000 in federal taxes.  As part of his plea agreement, Albertson also admitted that he lured clients into investing money with him by promising a high rate of return.  Albertson never paid the clients the high rate of return.  Instead of investing their money, he used it to pay his own debts. Albertson admitted he cashed clients’ checks and used the proceeds to repay someone else. 

This case was investigated by the West Virginia State Police and the Internal Revenue Service.

Charleston, W.Va. – An Ohio man has pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute heroin, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today.  Christopher Swann, 23, admitted at today’s plea hearing that he and others traveled back and forth from Charleston, West Virginia, to Ohio to purchase heroin for resale in Charleston.  Swann was previously indicted on one count of conspiracy to distribute heroin in October of 2013.  He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 18, 2014. He faces up to 20 years imprisonment, a $1,000,000 fine and at least three years of supervised release.

This case was investigated by Charleston Police Department’s Special Enforcement Unit.

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A federal grand jury in Charleston, West Virginia, returned two indictments yesterday related to the illegal distribution of heroin.

The grand jury returned a three-count indictment charging Marion Alonvo Felder of Upper Sandusky, Ohio, with the distribution of heroin on September 2, September 14 and October 1, 2013, in Parkersburg, West Virginia. The grand jury also charged Keith Irons, 25, of Marion County, Ohio, with heroin distribution.  According to the two-count indictment of Irons, he distributed heroin on October 3 and October 6, 2013, in Parkersburg, West Virginia.

Marion and Irons each face up to 20 years in prison on each count if convicted.

The investigation was conducted by the Parkersburg Police Department and the Parkersburg Violent Crime and Narcotics Task Force.  Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks is in charge of the prosecution.

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

Note: The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

BECKLEY, W.Va. – Crystal Gail Graham, 38, was sentenced today in Beckley, West Virginia, by United States District Court Judge Irene C. Berger to three years of probation and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.  Graham previously pleaded guilty in November of 2013 to obtaining oxycodone by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception and subterfuge.  Graham was employed as a licensed practical nurse at Beckley’s Jackie Withrow Hospital.  She used her position at the hospital to illegally obtain oxycodone that she later sold to a confidential informant working with the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department.  Graham’s employment at the hospital was terminated as a result of the incident.

This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The United States Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin.

BEAVER, W.Va. – Leah Kirk, age 21, was sentenced today in Beckley, West Virginia, by United States District Court Judge Irene C. Berger to three years of probation and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.  Kirk previously pleaded guilty in November 2013 to distributing oxycodone, a powerful prescription pain killer.  Kirk admitted that between May 15, 2013 and June 12, 2013, she sold several oxycodone pills and alprazolam pills to a confidential informant who was working with the Beckley Police Department and the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department.  The drug sale occurred on Eisenhower Drive in Beckley.

This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The United States Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin.

Matthew John Wiggins was previously convicted of possessing child pornography in 2000

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. –A 41-year-old Wood County resident was convicted of accessing child pornography with intent to view it and attempting to persuade a person to destroy evidence after a two-day bench trial in Huntington, West Virginia, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today.  Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers found that Matthew John Wiggins, of Parkersburg, West Virginia, knowingly accessed child pornography with intent to view it while he was logged on to a computer located at the Parkersburg and Wood County Library on January 16 and 17, 2013. 

Chief Judge Chambers also found that on the eve of trial, Wiggins sent a letter to a person attempting to persuade that person to destroy a library card that Wiggins knew would be important evidence in his trial.

The investigation began when an Information Security Officer with the West Virginia Office of Information Security and Controls, an agency that monitors state computers for illegal activity, discovered that someone at the Parkersburg and Wood County Library was downloading child pornography images on a library computer on January 16 and 17, 2013.  The Office of Information Security and Controls was able to trace the IP Address to a computer that was located on the main floor of the library. The Information Security Officer reported the illegal activity to the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.  On January 17, 2013, a member of the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and two Parkersburg Police Department detectives went to the library and found Wiggins sitting at the computer on which he had downloaded child pornography on January 16 and 17.  A forensic examination performed on that computer revealed that Wiggins accessed, with intent to view, over 50 images of child pornography.  

Wiggins was previously convicted in federal court in the Southern District of West Virginia in 2000 for knowingly possessing child pornography and was sentenced to 27 months’ imprisonment.  Within 11 days of being released from prison, he was found to be in possession of a computer, in violation of the terms and conditions of his supervised release.  At that time, Wiggins admitted to using software designed to delete data on the computer he had at his residence.  During Wiggins’ second term of supervised release, he was caught viewing pictures of naked young females on a computer located at the West Virginia University Parkersburg library and was sentenced to imprisonment for 12 months.

Wiggins faces a minimum mandatory 10 years’ and up to 40 years’ imprisonment, as well as a lifetime of supervised release.  He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 7, 2014, in Huntington, West Virginia.

The investigation of Wiggins was conducted by the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, with the assistance of the West Virginia Office of Information Security and Controls, the Parkersburg Police Department, the West Virginia State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant United States Attorneys Lisa Johnston and Jennifer Rada were in charge of the prosecution.   

This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood.  In February 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims.

Third annual ceremony lauds students for exceptional character, commitment to social justice

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorneys Booth Goodwin, Southern District of West Virginia, and Bill Ihlenfeld, Northern District of West Virginia, today recognized 88 high school juniors from throughout West Virginia as U.S. Attorney’s Ambassadors for Justice.  The afternoon ceremony to honor the recipients took place at the Culture Center in Charleston.  The U.S. Attorney’s Ambassador for Justice program is an initiative co-sponsored by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern and Northern Districts of West Virginia.  It honors high school juniors who have shown outstanding leadership skills and a commitment to social justice. 

Today’s ceremony marked the third time that U.S. Attorney Goodwin has recognized leaders from high schools in the Southern District of West Virginia.  This year, U.S. Attorney Ihlenfeld joined to recognize students from the Northern District of West Virginia as well.

“I am very pleased to honor these remarkable high school juniors from throughout the state of West Virginia as Ambassadors for Justice,”  U.S. Attorney Goodwin said.  “These 88 students have each demonstrated a powerful ethical compass and have shown tremendous leadership.”  Goodwin continued, “ Their ideas and perspectives are invaluable in helping to identify and resolve common and important issues.  These are students who are willing to step forward and do something if one of their peers makes a self-destructive decision or bullies someone else.” 

Goodwin said that he and U.S. Attorney Ihlenfeld share concerns about problems facing young people in West Virginia.  “This isn’t just an award or a title.  This is an ongoing mission for us, for our offices, our communities and for each of these Ambassadors for Justice.  Together, we can exert positive influence in our schools and communities,” said Goodwin.

The U.S. Attorney’s Ambassadors for Justice program was created by U.S. Attorney Goodwin two years ago in response to rising school bullying and social media threats involving young people.  The program was also spurred by a February 2012 school shooting at Chardon High School in Chardon, Ohio, in which a student opened fire on his classmates, killing three and wounding two others.  Other episodes involving planned violent attacks by young people that were prevented due to the swift actions of students and school Prevention Resource Officers here in the Southern District of West Virginia have also encouraged U.S. Attorney Goodwin’s initiative.

Nominations to be U.S. Attorney’s Ambassadors for Justice are made by school principals and administrative leaders.  Goodwin said that outstanding character, devotion to citizenship, and a commitment to serving others are fundamentals for nomination.  This year, 87 high schools in 46 counties in West Virginia nominated 88 outstanding students to be Ambassadors for Justice. 

The 2013 U.S. Attorney’s Ambassadors for Justice are as follows (by county/student name/high school):  Please note:  Individual photos of each student are available at: www.justice.gov/usao/wvs/AforJ.html

Barbour County
Karlie Smallwood, Philip Barbour High School Complex

Berkeley County
Jacob Orlando, Martinsburg High School
Tyler Brewster, Musselman High School

Boone County
Cortney Belcher, Van Jr./Sr. High School
Lindsay Collins, Sherman High School
Michael Miller, Scott High School

Braxton County
Logan Frame, Braxton County High School

Brooke County
Paraag Gupta, Brooke High School

Cabell County
Chantz Gould, Cabell Midland High School
Robert Senior, Huntington High School

Calhoun County
Erica Jones, Calhoun Middle/High School

Clay County
Cayla Black, Clay County High School

Doddridge County
Wyatt Ford, Doddridge County High School

Fayette County
Tyler Brandstetter, Meadow Bridge High School
Kaitlyn Akers, Valley High School
Aaliyah Sears, Oak Hill High School
Cody Zackoski, Midland Trail High School

Grant County
Brandon Streets, Union Educational Complex

Greenbrier County
Jordan Tincher, Greenbrier West High School
Allegra Browne, Greenbrier East High School

Hampshire County
John Seldon, Hampshire High School

Hancock County
Brennan Smith, Oak Glen High School

Hardy County
Bekah Mongold, East Hardy High School

Harrison County
Bryan Van Norman, Liberty High School
Joseph Ellis, Notre Dame High School
Megan Talbott, South Harrison High School

Jackson County
James Curry, Ravenswood High School
Matthew Groves, Ripley High School

Kanawha County
Maura James, St. Albans High School
Ian Perry, Riverside High School
Hanna Fuller, Nitro High School
Aric Taylor, Sissonville High School
Logan Shomo, South Charleston High School
Joshua McClung, Herbert Hoover High School
James Lares, George Washington High School
Sarah Clifford, Capital High School

Lincoln County
Mark Neace, Jr., Lincoln County High School

Logan County
Jonathan Collins, Man High School
James Frye, Logan Senior High School

Marion County
Colton Moor, East Fairmont High School
Morgan Pethtel, North Marion High School

Marshall County
Matthew Vucelik, Bishop Donahue High School
Jacqueline Gellner, John Marshall High School

Mason County
Mary Workman, Point Pleasant Jr./Sr. High School
Ja’nae Cundiff, Wahama High School
Charles Mayes, Hannan Jr./Sr. High School

McDowell County
Cody Adair, River View High School

Mercer County
Hayley Parnell, Montcalm High School
Cody Goins, Bluefield High School
Lindsey Masters, PikeView High School
Caleb Robinette, Princeton Senior High School

Mineral County
Micah Beachy, Frankfort High School

Mingo County
Chase Justice, Mingo Central High School
Hayden Sturgell, Tug Valley High School

Monongalia County
Dominic Muttillo, Morgantown High School
John Kolar, University High School

Monroe County
Dillon Bradley, James Monroe High School

Nicholas County
Rebecca Passarella, Nicholas County High School
Shanley Amick, Richwood High School

Ohio County
Colin Kelly, Linsly School
Maria Miller, Wheeling Central Catholic High School
Megan Chacalos, Wheeling Park High School

Pendleton County
Autumn Smith, Pendleton County Middle/High School

Putnam County
Brandon Stone, Winfield High School
John Hathaway, Winfield High School
Daria Seccurro, Hurricane High School
Christian Buckley, Poca High School

Raleigh County
Emily Fedders, Woodrow Wilson High School
Julie Castle, Liberty High School
Josef Heller, Shady Spring High School
Sean Worix, Independence High School

Randolph County
Linsey McCollam, Elkins High School
Luciano Casillas, Pickens Elementary/High School
Hannah Currence, Tygarts Valley Middle/High School

Ritchie County
Nicholas Tate, Ritchie County High School

Roane County
Aaron Roberts, Roane County High School

Taylor County
Athena McMillen, Grafton High School

Tucker County
Morgan Moss, Tucker County High School

Upshur County
Mikinna Poling, Buckhannon Upshur High School

Wayne County
John Newman, Tolsia High School
Taylor Ward, Spring Valley High School

Wetzel County
Soren Shade, Magnolia High School
Craig Allen, Paden City High School
Victoria Smallwood, Valley High School

Wirt County
Elizabeth Adams, Wirt County High School

Wood County
Jessie Pratt, Parkersburg South High School
Jordan Lallemont, Parkersburg High School

Wyoming County
Aerial Deskins, Westside High School

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorneys Booth Goodwin, Southern District of West Virginia, and Bill Ihlenfeld, Northern District of West Virginia, will host a special recognition event honoring more than 60 high school students from across the state who have been selected as United States Attorney’s Ambassadors for Justice on WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2014 at 1:00 p.m. at The Culture Center, State Capitol, in  Charleston.  The U.S. Attorney’s Ambassador for Justice program is an initiative which honors West Virginia high school juniors who have shown outstanding character, devotion to citizenship, and a commitment to serving others.   

U.S. Attorney’s Ambassador for Justice Ceremony

WHO: R. Booth Goodwin II, United States Attorney, Southern District of West Virginia
Bill Ihlenfeld, United States Attorney, Northern District of West Virginia
High School Student Nominees

WHERE: The Culture Center
State Capitol, Charleston, WV

WHEN:     Wednesday, March 12, 2014 at 1:00 pm

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Parkersburg woman has pleaded guilty today to a federal heroin charge, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today.  During her plea hearing before United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston, Daquarri Coats, 21, admitted that on September 30, 2013, she sold $1,950.00 worth of heroin to an informant working with the Parkersburg Police Department.  The drug deal took place near the intersection of 30th Street and Dudley Avenue in Parkersburg. 

Coats faces up to 20 years in federal prison when she is sentenced on June 5, 2014.

The Parkersburg Police Department along with the Parkersburg Narcotics and Violent Crimes Task Force conducted the investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks is in charge of the prosecution. 

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

Huntington, W.Va. – A Illinois felon who illegally possessed four firearms in February of 2013 was sentenced today to six years and six months in federal prison, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced.  Thomas Ray III, 44, of Will County, Illinois, previously pleaded guilty in December 2013 to possessing a firearm after having been convicted of a felony offense. 

On February 5, 2013, the United States Marshal Service C.U.F.F.E.D. Task Force in Huntington was contacted by the Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force in Illinois to assist in locating Ray.  Ray was wanted by the State of Illinois for a parole violation.  Deputy Marshals found Ray at a residence in the 2100 block of 9th Avenue in Huntington.  As Ray was approached, he fled and was apprehended a short time later.  Deputy Marshals found Ray with a loaded Glock .40 caliber pistol concealed in the back of his waistband.

Deputy Marshals also conducted a search of the 9th Avenue residence and discovered three additional firearms:  a loaded Mossberg 12 gauge shotgun, an AR-15 5.56mm assault rifle along with a 30 round magazine, and a GSG-5 .22 caliber rifle, also with a 30 round magazine.  Ray admitted to possessing all the firearms seized.

Ray was prohibited from possessing a firearm based on prior felony convictions for Forcible Armed Detention and Giving a False Bomb/Gas Alarm.

The United States Marshal Service conducted the investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams handled the prosecution.  The sentence was imposed by Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide commitment to reduce gun crime in the United States by working with existing local programs that target gun crime.

Dallas Toler is second former official to draw prison time in Mingo corruption probe

CHARLESTON, W.Va. –  A former chief magistrate is the latest defendant sentenced to federal prison time in a probe of corruption in Mingo County, West Virginia, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today. Dallas Toler, 45, of Delbarton, West Virginia, was sentenced to 27 months’ imprisonment. Last December, Toler admitted in federal court that he falsified a voter registration application during the 2012 primary election campaign. Toler faked the application so that a convicted felon, still on probation and thus barred from voting, could vote for Toler’s Team Mingo faction. 

“Voters deserve clean elections and honest public officials,” said U.S. Attorney Goodwin. “Politicians have to follow the law like everybody else. When they forget that, they need to pay the price. Today’s sentence is an important reminder that no one is above the law.” 

United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston, who imposed today’s sentence, emphasized the need to send a strong deterrent message in light of Mingo County’s history of public corruption. 

Toler pleaded guilty in December 2013 and was released on bond while awaiting today’s sentencing. Last month, however, Goodwin’s office successfully asked to have Toler’s bond revoked, citing evidence that Toler was part of a conspiracy to distribute cocaine. According to prosecutors, shortly after resigning from office as a requirement of his plea agreement, Toler began bankrolling a local cocaine dealer. The dealer became a confidential informant for investigators after local police caught him using Toler’s car to attempt to transport cocaine. In January of this year, the informant recorded Toler accepting profits from the sale of cocaine and making plans for future cocaine distribution.

At a February 13 hearing on the bond revocation motion, Toler declined to contest prosecutors’ allegations of his drug activity, and Judge Johnston revoked Toler’s bond. Toler has been in federal custody since then.

Toler joins former Mingo County Commissioner David Baisden as the second official sentenced to prison in a wide-ranging corruption probe led by Goodwin’s office. Baisden received a 20-month prison sentence in January. He admitted that he tried to extort a discounted set of tires from an Appalachian Tire store in Williamson, West Virginia. When Appalachian officials refused Baisden’s demand, he punished them by cutting off tens of thousands of dollars of county business that otherwise would have gone to Appalachian. 

Two more former Mingo officials are set to be sentenced next month. Former circuit judge Michael Thornsbury will be sentenced April 21, and former county prosecutor C. Michael Sparks will be sentenced April 24. Both officials pleaded guilty last year in a scheme to force George White, a local drug defendant, to change lawyers after they learned that White and his lawyer were informing the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of alleged crimes committed by then-sheriff Eugene Crum. A criminal defendant has a constitutionally protected right to counsel of his choosing.

All four officials charged to date in the federal investigation have been required to resign from office.

The investigation of Toler’s election fraud was conducted by the FBI and the West Virginia State Police (WVSP), with assistance from the West Virginia Secretary of State’s office. Toler’s drug-distribution activity was investigated by the FBI, the WVSP, the Mingo County Sheriff’s Department and the Williamson Police Department. Counsel to the United States Attorney Steven R. Ruby and Assistant United States Attorney C. Haley Bunn are in charge of the prosecution.

BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that four defendants convicted of distributing hydromorphone pills to persons cooperating with law enforcement authorities were sentenced in federal court in Bluefield.   Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber sentenced Kevin Eugene Petty, 36, of Bluefield, to eight years in prison.  Petty received an additional sentence of two years for violating the conditions of his previously imposed supervised release.  He pled guilty in September of 2013, admitting that on September 20, 2012, he distributed ten hydromorphone pills at or near Bluefield, West Virginia. 

Jason Robert Davis, 28, of Bluefield, Virginia, was sentenced to three years and 10 months in federal prison. He pled guilty in September of 2013, admitting that on January 31, 2012, he distributed five hydromorphone pills. That drug deal took place near Princeton.  Davis also admitted that between 2010 and 2012 he sold a total of 125 hydromorphone pills, 125 oxycodone pills and 25 oxymorphone pills. 

Bobby Michael Short, Jr., 47, of Princeton, was sentenced to one year three months in federal prison.  He pled guilty in November of 2013, admitting that on May 17, 2013, he distributed one hydromorphone pill in Princeton. He also admitted distributing a total of 75 hydromorphone pills. 

Darryl I. Shrader, 54, of Spanishburg, was sentenced to three years of probation.  He pled guilty in November of 2013, admitting that on January 28, 2013, he distributed four hydromorphone pills in Bluefield, West Virginia.  He also admitted distributing eight more hydromorphone pills during January, 2013. 

These cases were investigated by the West Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations and the Southern West Virginia Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, and were prosecuted under the Bluefield Pill Initiative, part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office,  joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District.

A federal inmate also appeared before Judge Faber.  Billy Williams, 24, an inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution at McDowell, near Welch, pled guilty to possessing a weapon in a federal correctional facility.  Williams admitted that on October 29, 2013, he possessed a homemade knife, commonly known as a “shank,” while he was serving time at the prison.  Williams faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine when he is sentenced on July 7, 2014.  The investigation was conducted  by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Defendant Traveled To Tennessee to Purchase Sports Car With Ill-Gotten Gains

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that a West Logan restaurant owner pled guilty Thursday to laundering cash from an illegal gambling operation.  Since May of 2008, Gregory A. Dotson, 51, of Chapmanville, who was the proprietor of Giovanni’s of Logan in West Logan, operated an illegal poker machine gambling parlor in the back of a tobacco store in South Williamson, Kentucky.  Although payouts from poker machines, often referred to as gray machines, are illegal under Kentucky law, Dotson routinely paid out gambling winnings to patrons.  Dotson retrieved the proceeds from the illegal gambling operation weekly and brought the cash across state lines to his office at Giovanni’s.  Dotson then commingled the cash he brought in from his legitimate business with that from his illegal enterprise.

On August 16, 2010, Dotson traveled from West Virginia to Bristol, Tennessee, with nearly $12,000 of cash proceeds from the illegal gambling operation and used those funds to help purchase a sports car. 

In October of 2013, agents from the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigative Division raided the gambling parlor, seizing forty machines in operation and another forty machines in storage.

As part of the plea agreement, Dotson agreed to forfeit nearly $150,000 in cash, a $96,000 Mercedes sport-utility vehicle, a $50,000 Rolex watch, and several expensive firearms, in addition to the eighty gray machines seized from the South Williamson operation. 

In addition to the forfeiture, Dotson faces up to ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine when he is sentenced on June 11, 2014.

The investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigative Division with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Thomas Ryan is in charge of the prosecution. 

BECKLEY, W.Va. – A Pennsylvania man was sentenced today to 18 months in federal prison for selling oxycodone in Beckley, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced.  David Hudson, 39, previously admitted that in July 2013 he sold several oxycodone pills to a confidential informant working with the Beckley Police Department Drug Unit.  The drug deal took place in the parking lot of a motel on Harper Road.

United States District Judge Irene C. Berger imposed today’s sentence.

This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs.  The United States Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers.  

Huntington, W.Va. – A Michigan man was sentenced to nine years and three months’ imprisonment for possession of heroin with intent to distribute, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today. Darius Lajuan Kincannon, 30, of Redford, Michigan, arrived in Huntington from Michigan in February 2013 on a Greyhound bus. Kincannon brought a backpack with him that contained, among other items, approximately 510.6 grams of heroin and a 16 ounce bottle of Superior Inisotal, a common cutting agent for heroin. The backpack was seized at the Greyhound station by the Huntington Police Department.  Kincannon previously plead guilty on November 19, 2013, to possession with intent to deliver 100 grams or more of heroin.

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District. 

Huntington, W.Va. – A Huntington man was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today. In June 2012, Ricky Eugene Lewis, 35, pawned a Harrington & Richardson .20 gauge shotgun at the Kenova Pawn Shop in Kenova, West Virginia. The transaction was captured on the store’s surveillance video. Lewis had been previously convicted of the felony offense of trafficking in opium.  Because of the felony conviction, Lewis was prohibited from possessing a firearm. Lewis was also involved in an incident December 2011 in Wayne County, West Virginia, in which he stole, among other items, two .38 caliber revolvers and a .22 caliber pistol, which, according to Lewis, he traded for drugs. 

Today’s sentence was imposed by Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Darrell Shawton Collins, 36, was indicted by a federal grand jury sitting in Charleston on March 4, 2014, on illegal drug distribution charges, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today.  According to a three-count indictment, Collins distributed heroin on December 4, 5, and 6, 2013, in Charleston. 

Collins faces up to 20 years in prison for each count, if convicted.

The investigation was conducted by the Charleston Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Rada is handling the prosecution.

Note: The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Charleston, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that Phillip Wayne Workman, 36, of Logan, West Virginia, was sentenced to two years and three months in prison for obstructing a joint state and federal arson investigation into a February 1, 2012 fire that destroyed a commercial building at 111 Stratton Street in downtown Logan.   Although four individuals—James Gregory Glick, Guy R. Miller, Shawn C. Simon and William Jamey Thompson—pled guilty to their respective roles in the conspiracy to burn the Stratton Street property for the $1 million insurance policy, Workman obstructed that investigation by providing false information to law enforcement, accusing other innocent individuals of conspiring to burn down the building.  Workman went so far as to stage a fake secret meeting with an individual in an attempt to corroborate his claims. At his plea hearing on October 31, 2013, Workman admitted that he completely fabricated the meeting, thereby obstructing and jeopardizing the arson and insurance fraud investigation.

Glick, 44, of Logan, will be sentenced on March 13, 2014.  Miller, 39, of Logan, and Simon, 41, Charleston, will be sentenced on March 20, 2014.  Thompson, 44, of Chapmanville, will be sentenced on March 24, 2014.

United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed today’s sentence. The West Virginia State Police and the IRS conducted the investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Thomas Ryan is in charge of the prosecution. 

BECKLEY, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced that two men facing drug charges appeared in federal court in Beckley today before United States District Judge Irene Berger.  Michael Harshaw Jr., 37, of Hinton, West Virginia, pled guilty to using a telephone to facilitate a felony drug offense and to possessing alprazolam (Xanax) without a prescription.  Harshaw admitted that on October 3, 2012, he had a telephone conversation with an individual cooperating with law enforcement authorities in which they set up a meeting to do a drug deal.  Later that day the two met in Hinton, and Harshaw sold the individual five oxycodone pills.  Harshaw also admitted that on October 10, 2012, authorities searched his home in Hinton and found that he had 17 Xanax pills containing alprazolam, a highly addictive controlled substance.  Harshaw did not have a prescription for the pills.  He faces up to ten years in prison and a fine of $500,000 when he is scheduled on June 26, 2014. The case was investigated by the West Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations.

William Smith, 40, of Crab Orchard, was sentenced to one year and two months in prison for distributing oxycodone.  Smith pled guilty in November of 2013, admitting that on January 3, 2013, he sold two oxycodone pills to a person cooperating with law enforcement authorities.  The drug deal took place at Smith’s residence in Crab Orchard.  The case was investigated by the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office Drug and Narcotic Investigative Unit and the Beckley Police Department Narcotics Unit.

These cases were prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Charleston man was sentenced yesterday to a total of 29 months’ imprisonment for violating the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced. Sam Bailey, Jr., pleaded guilty to violating SORNA’s requirement that a sex offender update his registration when moving to another state or changing employment. Bailey moved from Kanawha County to Columbus, Ohio, in 2012 but failed to register as a sex offender at his new residence.

Bailey’s sex-offender status stems from a first-degree rape conviction in Monroe County, New York, in 1979.

At the time of Bailey’s SORNA violation, he was on federal supervised release for an unrelated drug conviction. His SORNA violation also constituted a violation of his supervised release conditions. The sentence imposed yesterday thus comprised 21 months’ imprisonment for the SORNA violation itself and eight months’ imprisonment for the supervised release violation. Bailey’s sentence also includes five years of supervised release after incarceration and a lifetime sex-offender registration requirement.  

SORNA, also known as the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, was enacted in 2006 to protect children from sexual exploitation and violent crime. 

The United States Marshals Service conducted the investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Erik S. Goes handled the prosecution.  The sentence was imposed by United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston.  The case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice that implements a unified and comprehensive strategy to reduce the sexual exploitation of children. Project Safe Childhood combines law enforcement efforts, community action, and public awareness toward this goal.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin today charged Carl Tomblin, 50, of Chapmanville, W.Va., with illegal drug distribution. According to an information filed in federal court today, Tomblin distributed oxymorphone, a powerful painkiller often sold under the brand name Opana.

The investigation that led to today’s charge is being conducted by the U.S. 119 Task Force and the West Virginia State Police. The prosecution is part of an ongoing effort by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District. Assistant United States Attorney Haley Bunn is handling the prosecution.

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Note: An information is only an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.