Dozens of people were arrested Tuesday in a major drug trafficking sweep in Huntington, W.Va., a city hit hard by the opioid . Among those arrested were the ringleaders, one in Huntington and two in Detroit, of a group that had been operating in Huntington for nearly 15 years. Operation Angels Envy also had a far-reaching impact throughout the DMV. News, Sports and Events from around Grafton and Taylor County! Ive been here since 1986, and this is the most narcotics Ive seen in a bust, Sheriff Ellifritz told the News & Tribune. Rattini is accused of distributing narcotic painkillers illegally to more than 200 pharmacies across West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Tennessee. Daily news from the Mineral News & Tribune delivered to your email! In 1991, police officers seized 59 boxes containing 1080 pounds of Heroin, with a street value ranging from $2.7 billion to $4 billion. He also added that the arrests made were primarily for felony crimes: The majority of the operations are all felony investigations, you have a few misdemeanors sprinkled in but those misdemeanor cases are complementary of the felony investigations, Sheriff Mellinger told WSAZ. The warrant was obtained through Circuit Court Judge J.W. Where are you from? Barnett, who owned Family Pharmacy, also professed not to know the reputation of the Wellness Center or that it had a list of acceptable pharmacies for patients to fill opioid prescriptions and that his was on it. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Find out what's happening around the state with this weekly email alert sent every Thursday evening! Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. With any luck we have eight years of this stuff so if they dont like it, they can find somewhere else to live.. In 2001, the West Virginia bureau of criminal investigation sent Smith to investigate a surge of opioids pills on the streets. JACKSON COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) - Dozens of people have been arrested in a large scale drug warrant sweep that is underway in Jackson County, West Virginia . Drug distributors delivered more than 30m opioid pills just to those three pharmacies, in one of the poorest counties in America. You couldnt beat him as a person. Unfortunately many people seem to think that crap matters..it does not. A free weekly newsletter with expert sports betting insight and analysis. Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password. Both Ellifritz and Bruce expressed their appreciation for all the departments working together in order to execute this warrant. The indictment seeks forfeiture of $410,016 in cash, six vehicles and a .22-caliber revolver and ammunition. Success! Police chief: Oak Hill drug bust biggest in 19 years. Updated: Mar 19, 2021 / 02:47 PM EDT BOONE COUNTY, WV (WOWK)According to the Boone County Sheriff's Office, deputies executed a search warrant at a residence along Hendrick's Drive in Keith and arrested 54-year-old Paul Thomas "Paulie" Lombardi from Orgas, West Virginia on Thursday. April 17, 2018 10:15 AM PT. Still at largewere Mota, Luna, Rodriguez, Longus, Rose,Orrillio,Velasquez-Lopez,Pinkcett, Gregory, Brown and Nunez-Arias, authorities said. Senate swiftly passes 'Equal Protection for Religion Act'. Invalid password or account does not exist. There was an error processing your request. He said 30 arrests were made as of midday Tuesday in the states second-largest city. Massive West Australian drug bust as close to 100kg of meth reportedly found stuffed in pillows stopped at Fremantle port. In 2007, someone anonymously tipped off the West Virginia medical board that Tiano was prescribing illegally. The policeman said it fell under the definition of wire fraud. They say Operation Angels Envy led to takedowns of seven drug trafficking organizations in the D.C. area, as well as their Los Angeles-based transportation network. 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The suspects transported the drugs using hidden traps in privately owned vehicles, semi-trailers, trucks, and recreational vehicles, authorities said. Offering praise for the 14 agencies involved, including the drug task force, which led the overall effort, Harrah said Thursdays actions are especially important and send a message to local communities. 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"Project Parkersburg was a game changer - it netted the largest meth bust in West Virginia history and resulted in more than a dozen defendants being prosecuted by my . Published June 22, 2021 4:25 a.m. PDT Share TORONTO - Twenty people are facing rafts of charges each and more than $61 million worth of cocaine, crystal meth and marijuana was seized in what. The boards punishment was to require him to write a book report on a medical textbook called Responsible Opioid Prescribing: A Physicians Guide. Washington County Prosecutor Nicole . When officers stopped the vehicle, they could smell the odor of marijuana. Bernard said agents serveda search warrant at the store in June and seized approximately $500,000 worth of drugs, including a kilogram of heroin and nine kilograms of cocaine. This is a continual battle; these officers are right back at it tomorrow morning.. "Drug traffickers don't work nine-to-five hours, so the people investigating this case have to work 24-seven, and this team worked for approximately a year investigating this case," he said. According to a news release from the drug task force that was sent out Thursday morning, investigators spent the majority of this summer identifying criminal suspects allegedly involved in the sale and distribution of numerous controlled substances, including heroin, methamphetamine and prescription pills, in central West Virginia. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. In December, Easton admitted to selling. Four people are facing multiple drug distribution charges after what is being called one of the largest drug busts in Louisa County history. The arrests were made . Im sitting here looking at this. Create a password that only you will remember. I would like to personally thank all involved agencies for their combined effort in removing this number of narcotics off the streets of Keyser, Mineral County, and the state of West Virginia, Bruce said. By then, Smith was watching. series identifies 13 of city's top drug dealers; dealers listed as: Joseph DiPalermo, Charles DiPalermo, Virgil Alessi, Ralph Tutino, Leroy Barnes, James Lofton, Frank Lucas, Steven Monsanto . Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in. "They represent lives saved from overdose deaths and the continuing nightmare of drug addiction and the never-ending spinoffs of associated crimes from robberies, retail thefts, shootings and others that tear at the very fabric of our great and prosperous community," he said. They pointed him to Mingo county. On Wednesday WSAZ reported the first part of the two-day operation, Operation Centennial Sweep, which has been in the works for roughly one year. Although Tranquilandia is referred to as a drug lab, it's actually much bigger. Download the FOX 5 DC News App for Local Breaking News and Weather. High 78F. Spring fire season means fire burning guidelines. However, what they did is they talked to the pharmacists and told them they couldnt do that any more, he said. Marshals Service; Homeland Security Investigations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the West Virginia Air National Guard;U.S. Customs and Border Protection; and U.S. attorney's offices in West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. The street value of the seized material is estimated at $372,700. Bruce said Eversole was arrested without incident during the bust and was transported to the Potomac Highlands Regional Jail in Augusta. If they can do 92 why cant we do 100 and once we meet that century mark, than anything is possible.. The value was. The operation was a joint effort between the Jackson County Sheriffs Department, Ravenswood Police Department, Ripley Police Department, U.S. So the clinic didnt bother to send prescriptions at all and took to the illegal practice of writing lists of names and dosages on sheets of paper and faxing them to the pharmacies. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Sign up for local job offers sent to your inbox. It sends a message that local, state and federal authorities are always hard at work trying to bring the perpetrators to justice, he said. MARTINSBURG, W.Va. Police Chief George Swartwood is proud of the men and women of his force . ELKINS, W.Va. - Elkins officials continue to investigate after arresting three people in the city's biggest meth bust to date. 2021, the Eastern Panhandle Drugs & Violent Crimes Task Force and the Martinsburg City Police Department Detective Unit and Uniformed Patrol Division, were involved in a combined effort investigation which resulted in a traffic stop of a vehicle on South Queen Street. The roundup, dubbed Operation Mountain Justice, was executed by the Central West Virginia Drug Task Force, in coordination with the prosecuting attorneys of Fayette and Nicholas counties, as well as several local and federal law enforcement agencies. What is xylazine? Like Ballengee, he claimed not to know about the reputation of the prescribing doctors, including one who was described in a local newspaper as a danger to the community because he prescribed thousands of addictive pills without legitimate purpose. What you need to know for today! In addition to Mota, the news release listed those indicted in connection with the alleged operation as: All but 11 of the defendants had been arrested as of Wednesday. Cabell County, which includes Huntington, has been hit especially hard. In 1995, the US Coast Guard carried out a huge drug bust off the coast of Peru, which at the time was the biggest drug bust on the high seas, though it would soon be topped. A mix of clouds and sun. Its things like that you can put in front of a jury and theyre going to go, that aint right. Theres no way people down there didnt know what was going on. On his release, Abad was deported to his home country, the Philippines, where he continues to practise. It shows that were trying to address the problem, he said, noting that authorities wont simply sit back on their hands once their work is gone from the headlines. Use the 'Report' link on Were not seeing meth labs here much anymore, he said, to which Bruce added, Fentanyl is the big issue now.. Terrence McGuirk, 51, who was jailed after the historic "Project Parkersburg" drug bust, was sentenced for conspiracy to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine. Create a password that only you will remember. People said nothings being done.. More than 120 law enforcement officers from 30 law enforcement agencies in Virginia, North Carolina and Texas executed the three-day targeted arrest operation dubbed Operation Cookout. appreciated. Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. Were standing out there with a couple of uniformed troopers and cars just keep going up, said Ciccarelli. Ellifritz, who previously worked in the Keyser Police Department, added that he definitely believes Its the biggest in the city of Keyser with all the combined drugs.. Operation Tranquilandia was led by the DEA in 1984. At least one suspect ordered fentanyl from a vendor in Shanghai that was successfully mailed through US Postal Service to Newport News, Virginia, according to the indictment. The pharmacist persuaded his assistant at the drugstore, Debra Justice, to set up a medical clinic just outside Kermit and they recruited a doctor more than an hour away at Marshall Universitys medical school, Dr John Tiano. The citizens would come and say, Why dont you do something about that up there? The average person doesnt know or doesnt stop and think that you cant just go in. Clearly he is a "supporter of LAW* and ORDER". By Matthew Hill; Jun 6, 2006 Jun 6, 2006 Updated Jul 29, 2014 . May 15, 2021 - 5:00 pm. Sign up to receive our daily newsletter about all things business and politics in West Virginia. Chris Cooper A search warrant lead to the arrest of John Ingram and Christopher Cooper. It wasnt long before drug distribution companies, some of the largest firms in America among them, were delivering millions of opioid pills a year to Tug Valley. Murphy told CNN affiliate WSB that it is by far the biggest heroin seizure in Georgia's . Before long, people in town were calling the Williamson Wellness Center a pill mill. Of those arrested, 54 are from Clarksburg. They said I was right in what I was alleging. The investigation is ongoing at this time. Police say 33-year-old James Martell Frazier, of Cambridge, Maryland, and Seaford, Delaware, was the leader, supervisor, financier and manager of an illegal drug network that spanned multiple . LEE COUNTY, Fla. Deputies arrested six people Wednesday in the largest drug bust to ever hit Lee County. Share with Us. Biggest drug bust goes down in LA sheriff department history . But Smith quickly discovered that users were happy to tell him where he could find doctors to write prescriptions and drug stores to fill them no questions asked. Daily News, Sports and Events for Preston County. During the search, 4.5 kilos of a fentanyl/heroin mix, $40,000 in cash and several handguns were found. PHILADELPHIA - Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro said Wednesday that his office's "Kensington Initiative" netted its sixth major . Subscribe today. The suspects attempted to thwart law enforcement surveillance using Facebook, and encrypted communications apps like FaceTime and WhatsApp, according to the indictment. Federal prosecutors charged him with making millions of dollars from illegally supplying opioids alongside Anthony Rattini, the former president of Ballengees major suppliers, Miami-Luken, and others. All he had to do was lend his name to the prescriptions and one of the nurses at the clinic would fill it out. 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