Two men have been sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking offenses in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia, according to an announcement from U.S. Attorney Matthew L. Harvey.
Gerald Lee Young, 58, of Wintersville, Ohio, received a sentence of 77 months in prison after being found in possession of cocaine base. Law enforcement stopped Young for driving the wrong way on a one-way street in Weirton, West Virginia. During the stop, Young told officers there might be controlled substances in his vehicle. A police K9 was used and officers discovered 49 grams of cocaine base and $1,114 in cash inside the car. Subsequent searches at two residences linked to Young resulted in the seizure of nearly 2 grams of fentanyl, 1.3 grams of cocaine base, almost 9 grams of methamphetamine, $1,918 in cash, and a firearm. Authorities noted that Young has previous drug convictions.
James Thomas Howard, also known as “Jim Tom,” aged 37 and from Washington, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 77 months for distributing methamphetamine. He sold 32 grams of methamphetamine to an individual in Marshall County and also has multiple prior drug convictions.
“These cases are a part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime, and repel the invasion of illegal immigration,” stated U.S. Attorney Matthew L. Harvey.
The prosecutions were handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Clayton Reid. The investigations were conducted by the Hancock Brooke Weirton Drug Task Force and the Marshall County Drug Task Force; both are funded through HIDTA initiatives.
U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided over both cases.
