26 people charged in Ohio Valley drug trafficking investigation | News, Sports, Jobs

|Photo by Emma Delk| U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced the indictments at a news conference held at the federal building and U.S. Courthouse. Law enforcement officers from several jurisdictions involved in the investigation, including the Wheeling Police Department, were present at the conference.

A federal grand jury has indicted 26 people from Nevada, Ohio and West Virginia in seven cases for trafficking fentanyl, cocaine base and methamphetamine.

Quavonte Pugh, 28, a Wheeling resident, and 11 others were named in the 16-count indictment accusing them of operating a drug trafficking enterprise that spanned from Las Vegas, Nevada, to the Ohio Valley.

The indictments resulted from an extensive investigation that included five federal search warrants executed on March 29 at locations in West Virginia and Ohio. During the searches, officers seized controlled substances, firearms and cash from the homes of those involved in the scheme.

Pugh, also known as “Q,” “Q Man” and “Brother,” is accused of being at the center of the drug trafficking operation. According to U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld, Pugh allegedly received shipments of pills from Las Vegas and then sent money back to pay for the drugs through Walmart's online money transfer system.

“This discovery led to further investigation into who he was distributing products to in that area,” Ihlenfeld said Tuesday, adding that the investigation began more than a year ago. “It took a while to finally figure out who was distributing to and who was working with whom, so it took several months to get to what we have today.”

The indictment also includes Dalen Cage, 30, of Las Vegas; James Galloway, 28, of Bellaire, Ohio; James Kidder, 47, of Martins Ferry, Ohio; Brady McKinley, 45, of Adena, Ohio; Maria Cunningham, 46, Quamya Pugh, 25, Steven Aldridge, 26, Cviens Cunningham, 29, Daryl Smith, 50, Tyrique Anthony Davis, 28, and Matthew Clemont, 31, all of Wheeling.

The people named in the indictment were allegedly involved in the operation to varying degrees. According to Ihlenfeld, Cage was allegedly Pugh's drug supplier, while others involved the redistribution of drugs in the Ohio Valley.

Ihlenfeld added that some of the defendants were “regular customers” within the criminal justice system.

“There are people in this indictment with long criminal histories and others who have done a lot of harm in the Ohio Valley over the years,” Ihlenfeld noted. “In this indictment, certain violent criminals regularly engage in drug trafficking. So we're addressing those individuals who simply continue to engage in criminal activity. »

Following the arraignment of those charged, U.S. Magistrate Judge James Mazzone will set deadlines for pretrial hearings, pretrial conferences and trials of the defendants. Ihlenfeld noted that the defendants have the opportunity to resolve the case before trial through a plea agreement.

“Some people in this indictment have significant criminal histories that are going to earn them a longer sentence. [if they are convicted] than individuals who have very little criminal history,” Ihlenfeld explained. “We also have different ages (in the indictment), so younger people generally don't have the same type of criminal history as older people. Ultimately, the judge will look at criminal history and drug weight, then make a decision based on other factors.

To track down the individuals named in the indictment, an Ohio Valley Drug Task Force, including members of the Wheeling Police Department, Ohio County Sheriff's Office, West Virginia State Police and the Drug Enforcement Agency, collaborated to obtain logistical surveillance and execute the five searches. mandates.

“The Ohio Valley Drug Task Force deserves the lion's share of the praise for this investigation that distributed the drug supply in the region and dismantled the organization,” noted Ihlenfeld, who also called attention to Other agencies that assisted in the case included the Brooke, Hancock, Marshall and Belmont County Sheriff's Offices as well as the Weirton and Moundsville Police Departments.

“The great thing about law enforcement here in the region is the spirit of cooperation that exists,” Ihlenfeld said. “I sat on the task force several times and saw that when they had to go up the river to Hancock County or cross the river to Jefferson County, all the agencies were there to help. Through this spirit of cooperation, we have been able to pursue sophisticated targets and more sophisticated organizations.

In Pugh's case, this cross-county cooperation allowed the task force to track bills shipped from Las Vegas to Wheeling and money going from Wheeling to Las Vegas through Walmart's peer-to-peer payment system.

The task force also tracked cocaine shipments from the southwest U.S. border and money flown from the Ohio Valley to Texas to pay for cocaine.

“Members of this organization traveled extensively by automobile along the Ohio River to distribute cocaine to communities in Ohio and West Virginia,” added Ihlenfeld, who noted that the organization was allegedly one of the main suppliers of cocaine in the region. .

Wheeling Police Department Chief Shawn Schweretfeger, who served as a member of the Ohio Valley Drug Task Force, said the five search warrants executed March 29 resulted in the recovery of a “large quantity of narcotics and firearms.

The impact of executing search warrants and stopping drug trafficking at the source has already been felt in Wheeling, Schwertfeger added. He explained that overdoses reported in the city during the first five months of 2024 demonstrated “significant reductions compared to last year.”

“I'm pretty sure we've achieved a 40 to 50 percent reduction (in overdoses),” Schwertfeger said. “When you get 26 indictments and the types of drugs referenced in this case come from Mexico and the West, once you eliminate that source you will see a reduction.”

In addition to reducing overdoses and drug abuse in the Valley, Schwertfeger stressed that the indictment would make the region safer overall.

“We're not just talking about overdoses, because drug trafficking organizations lead to violence,” Schwertfeger said. “We have recovered firearms that could potentially be used or could have been used. We're still investigating this issue and these firearms with our friends and partners at the (Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms), but reducing this type of criminal activity in our communities is always what we're trying to do.

Ihlenfeld added that since many of the names in the indictment have long criminal histories, preventing them from committing further crimes in the area will also make the community safer.

“This indictment does not mean that drug problems go away, which is why I think it is still important to talk about prevention and treatment and the need for us, collectively, as a society, to do better in this area,” Ihlenfeld added. “I am optimistic that we will find solutions that will help support the enforcement elements.”

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