ASHLAND, Ky.— Two men, Ricardo Rothwell, 42, and Aaron McWhorter, 29, both from Ashland, were respectively sentenced to 72 months and 137 months in federal prison on Monday, by U.S. District Judge David Bunning, for various methamphetamine trafficking and firearm charges.
Rothwell was sentenced after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams of methamphetamine. According to his plea agreement, on July 10, 2021, Rothwell was stopped by law enforcement at a traffic stop, where they found him in possession of 96.8 grams of methamphetamine, 11.35 grams of fentanyl, .97 grams of cocaine, and 2.2 grams of marijuana.
McWhorter was sentenced after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. According to his plea agreement, on July 5, 2021, law enforcement was dispatched on reports of a man passed out in a vehicle, later identified as McWhorter. Law enforcement found him in possession of a firearm. McWhorter admitted that he knew that he was previously convicted in Carter County Circuit Court for felony possession of a controlled substance and was prohibited from possessing a firearm. McWhorter was also in possession distribution quantities of narcotics.
Rothwell and McWhorter both pleaded guilty in May 2022.
Under federal law, Rothwell and McWhorter must serve 85 percent of their prison sentences. Upon their release from prison, they will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years.
Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Louisville Field Office, J. Todd Scott, Special Agent in Charge, DEA, Louisville Field Division; Chief Todd Kelley, Ashland Police Department; and Sheriff Bobby Woods, Boyd County Sheriff’s Office, jointly announced the sentences.
The investigation was conducted by the DEA, FBI, Ashland Police Department, and Boyd County Sheriff’s Office. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Greenfield.
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