Tag: Drugs

W.Va. Man Charged with Scamming Veterans Administration for Drugs

  A Bridgeport man has been charged with falsifying documents to inflate his Veterans Administration disability benefits and with fraudulently obtaining drugs from the VA.

U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced the 10-count indictment against 65-year-old Thomas Cueto on Tuesday. If convicted, Cueto faces up to 10 years in prison on one count and four years each on the remaining nine charges. Federal prosecutors are also seeking to recover $480,000 in VA benefits they claim Cueto has collected since 1999.

According to prosecutors, Cueto served in the Army from 1969 to 1972 and was awarded disability benefits for post-traumatic stress disorder. They claim Cueto lied about his service awards and received narcotics from VA medical personnel after falsely stating that he was not receiving drugs from any private providers.

Police Arrest 49 During Ohio County Patrol Blitz

Law enforcement officers made 49 felony and misdemeanor arrests and issued 82 citations during a patrol blitz in Ohio County.The Mountaineer Highway…

  Law enforcement officers made 49 felony and misdemeanor arrests and issued 82 citations during a patrol blitz in Ohio County.

The Mountaineer Highway Interdiction Team and other officers also recovered prescription painkillers, marijuana and psilocybin during the operation. Officers conducted the saturation patrol between May 19 and May 23 on highways and secondary roads, and served warrants throughout the area.

Local and state police officials announced the operation’s results Tuesday at a news conference in Wheeling.

Between January and April, the interdiction team made 120 felony and misdemeanor arrests and issued 53 citations. The officers also seized drugs valued at $62,493 and a total $113,431 in cash.

Plea Hearing Sought in Drug Case of Gov. Tomblin's Brother

Federal prosecutors are seeking a plea hearing for the brother of West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin in a drug distribution case.

Assistant U.S. Prosecutor C. Haley Bunn filed the motion Thursday in U.S. District Court in Charleston in the case involving 50-year-old Carl Tomblin of Chapmanville.

Bunn asked the court to schedule a hearing at which Carl Tomblin is expected to plead guilty to a federal information charging him with illegally distributing oxymorphone, a prescription painkiller, in December.

The information was filed Wednesday. It typically signals the defendant is cooperating with the investigation.

No hearing date was immediately set.

Gov. Tomblin's Brother Faces Drug Charge

West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s brother is facing a federal drug distribution charge.
 
A federal information charges 50-year-old Carl Tomblin of Chapmanville with illegally distributing oxymorphone, a prescription painkiller, on Dec. 6, 2013, at or near Chapmanville.
 
The governor said Wednesday in a statement that he’s saddened and disappointed but he loves his brother. He says his brother needs help and must be held accountable for his actions.
 
A telephone number for Carl Tomblin rang unanswered Wednesday.
 
U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin says in a news release that the charge stems from an investigation by the U.S. 119 Task Force and the West Virginia State Police.
 

   

Two Men Plead Guilty in Meth Trafficking Case

A West Virginia resident and a Florida man have admitted their roles in a methamphetamine trafficking case. Forty-nine-year-old Howard Leon Lykins II of…

A West Virginia resident and a Florida man have admitted their roles in a methamphetamine trafficking case.
 
     Forty-nine-year-old Howard Leon Lykins II of Charleston pleaded guilty in federal court in Charleston on Tuesday to maintaining a residence for drug purposes. Forty-four-year-old Richard Milton Hudson Riggall of Zephyrhills, Fla., entered a guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
 
     U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin says search of Lykins’ home last July found methamphetamine, digital scales, two guns and more than $41,000 in cash in Riggall’s luggage. A search of another area residence turned up more than 900 grams of high-purity ice methamphetamine.
 
     Goodwin says Riggall admitted he brought the ice methamphetamine from Florida.
 
     Both men face up to 20 years in federal prison. Sentencing is set for April 29.
 

Task Force in Northern West Virginia Targets Drug Trafficking

Law enforcement agencies in Northern West Virginia are working together to combat drug trafficking.
 
     Local, state and federal authorities announced the creation of the Mountain Region Drug & Violent Crime Task Force on Monday during a news conference in Elkins.
 
     U.S. Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld II says the task force began work in 2013. But its formation wasn’t announced until Monday due to ongoing investigations.

“Last year, the state set a record of the number of meth labs that were busted by law enforcement. We see a lot of meth. But in this region, we also see a large amount of prescription pain killer abuse,” said Ihlenfeld.

The task force’s work has led to the indictments of nine people on federal drug charges last week. Six people indicted in August 2013 are awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to federal drug charges.
 
     Another investigation led to the conviction of a man accused of stealing prescription painkillers from a pharmacy in Parsons in 2013.

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