CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Ricky Lee Taylor, also known as “RT,” 58, of Charleston, was sentenced today to two years in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release, for his role in a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that distributed large amounts of methamphetamine, fentanyl and other illegal drugs in the Huntington area.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Taylor admitted that he arranged a transaction involving cocaine base, also known as “crack,” during a telephone call with an individual in Huntington on May 11, 2021. After the transaction was arranged, Taylor traveled from Charleston to Huntington, met with the individual, and received the drugs. Taylor was subsequently stopped by law enforcement officers on Interstate 64 while returning to Charleston. Officers seized the crack, which Taylor admitted he intended to distribute, and a loaded .40 caliber pistol that Taylor also possessed during the traffic stop.
Taylor previously pleaded guilty to using a telephone to facilitate a felony controlled substance offense. The case is the result of a long-term investigation that disrupted the DTO and its distribution of fentanyl, methamphetamine, oxycodone, heroin, cocaine and crack. All 18 defendants have pleaded guilty
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Southern West Virginia TOC-West Task Force. The Southern West Virginia TOC-West Task Force consists of officers with 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, Ohio also assisted in the investigation.
United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph F. Adams and Courtney L. Cremeans prosecuted the case.
The investigation was part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations, and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.
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-109.
###