HUNTINGTON W.Va. – A Charleston man pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge based on his involvement with a drug trafficking organization (DTO) operating in Huntington.
According to court documents, Ricky Lee Taylor, also known as “RT,” 57, admitted that he arranged a cocaine base transaction on May 11, 2021, during a telephone call with an individual who was located in Huntington. After the transaction was arranged, Taylor traveled from Charleston to Huntington, met with the individual, and received the drugs. Taylor was then stopped by officers with the Hurricane Police Department on Interstate 64 returning to the Charleston area. Officers seized the cocaine base which Taylor admitted he intended to distribute. Officers also seized a loaded .40 caliber pistol Taylor possessed during the stop.
Taylor pleaded guilty to using a telephone to facilitate a felony controlled substance offense. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11, 2022, and faces up to four years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement. The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Southern West Virginia TOC-West Task Force consisting of the Cabell County Sheriff’s Department, the Hurricane Police Department, and the Marshall University Police Department, with support from the West Virginia State Police, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Violent Crime and Drug Task Force West. The Ohio Highway Patrol, the Kentucky State Police, and the FBI and DEA in Columbus also assisted in the investigation.
United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the hearing. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph F. Adams and Courtney L. Cremeans are prosecuting the case.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:21-cr-00109-16.
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