The Prietossent associates to gas stations and other locations in Southern Californiato pick up drugs, the lead investigator said. The men from Detroit established trust and Jose Prieto soonsent them50-pound shipments of meth from California to Kentucky. All rights reserved. Investigators caught her with sevenpounds of meth and more than $44,000 in drug proceeds. POLICE REPORT: Suspected drug . Our Street Crimes Unit, along with our federal and local partners, have worked tirelessly to take down this drug trafficking organization., Sheriff Keith Cain said, This investigation is yet another example of the strong relationship that exists between local law enforcement and our federal partners. If Jose Prieto worried she might spill secrets to police, he was right. Reporter Beth Warren: bwarren@courier-journal.com; 502-582-7164; Twitter @BethWarrenCJ. According to the Fivco Area Drug Enforcement (F.A.D.E.) A Philadelphia police car with flashing lights in Philadelphia, Monday, Jan. 17, 2022. Several documents in the case of the Prietos and Greenhills remainsealed and some people linked to the case, including a veteran defense attorney and friends of a homicide victim, declined to be interviewed, citing the volatility of the drug ring. LONDON, Ky. (LEX18) Agents across Kentucky arrested 12 people and confiscated more than 10,000 oxycodone pills. Tunica police ruled Pack's deatha suicide. But agents say he secretly cultivateda different crop marijuana. During four years of service, he received several medals and commendations and earned the rank of senior airman. Investigators say the accused part of the "Chapitos" network facilitated the purchase of the precursor chemicals of fentanyl from China, manufactured the deadly drug in Mexico, and then worked to smuggle the substance into the U.S. Four Chinese nationals and one Guatemalan national were charged with supplying fentanyl ingredients to the cartel. Of the 24 charged, eight are in custody across the globe. Published: Apr. 64-year-old Doug Caldwell of Hyden, 47-year-old Tony Collett of Stinnett, 57-year-old Scott Hazlett of Hyden, 59-year-old Tresa Hazlett of Hyden, 56-year-old Chrisley Lowe of Hyden, 44-year-old Gloria Lowe of Hyden, 56-year-old Wyckliffe Morgan, Jr. of Stinnett, 27-year-old Kasey Roberts of Stinnett, 66-year-old Henry Smith of Stinnett, 42-year-old Tommy Smith of Stinnett, 52-year-old Randal Wells of Busy, and 44-year-old Shannon Wilder of Essie were all arrested for trafficking methamphetamine, and taken to the Leslie County Detention Center. Just a real great accomplishment by these guys.. Additionally, according to the criminal complaints, on January 13, 2021, federal and local law enforcement executed multiple search warrants at locations associated with the Watkins DTO in Owensboro, Kentucky. WAYNE COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - One Wayne County woman is facing a host of charges following a traffic stop. TomoNews US. "We are doing everything in our power, and using every authority we have, to bring those responsible to justice," he added. The Bardstown Police Department seized over 100 pounds of marijuana and $50,000 during a search at a home in Bardstown late last week, according to police. The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox. The case isn't over. From 2016-18, the Prieto drug ring dominated the meth trade in Louisville, saturating the citywith more than 100 kilogramsworth millions of dollars, thelead investigator told The Courier Journal. Each defendant is facing up to 20 years in prison, a maximum fine of $1,000,000, three years of released supervision, and having to forfeit any assets used to facilitate the crimes. Investigators began to see proof of theDetroit link. This story was originally published March 15, 2022, 9:46 AM. We know they were supplying large amounts of fentanyl to this community, Laird said. They also sent associates to Louisville and put them up in hotels, where they waited for Wiley Greenhill or one of his associates to bring money to their hotel room, the DEA agent said. But a series of betrayals were coming, dooming the father and son's joint enterprise. His partnerfired back, killing the gunman and anotherpassenger. Chris graduated from UK in December 2018. Police eventually tracked downWilliamson, who is serving a 10-year sentence in a Kentucky prison for second-degree manslaughter. Twenty people have been arrested in a monthslong drug investigation in Northern Kentucky, officials with the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force announced Thursday. THC is a psychoactive compound. As the case grew more complex and widespread,ATF agents called in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in Louisville. Louis Prieto had settled in Los Angeles, a two-hour drive southwest of his father in Apple Valley. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. The police chief said overdoses in Paducah have continued to rise year-over-year. For Greenhill, a small-time criminal from Detroit, the case agent said, it was a chance to be his own boss. His sonis serving a sentence of seven years and three months. On top of arresting 12 people, the joint investigation seized approximately 10,000 diverted oxycodone pills and over $2 million. It's part of a story the WAVE Troubleshooters have been unraveling linked to the murders of 3-year-old Trinity Randolph and her father, Brandon Waddles. He later claimed the cartel torched his marijuana field as a warning and to stop him from making fast money to pay his debt. Dealership owner, salesman rolled back mileage on cars before reselling them, police say, Teenager dies after being pinned by vehicle, Kentucky mom now facing charges in connection with death of child, Gun found in Ripley High School students truck, Thousand-ton rockslide cleared in Boone County. Authorities said two people were inside the barn at the time of the fire but were able to get out. Both were untrue, police say. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way. Jose Prieto was 11 whenhis father hurried their family out of hishomeland and into the U.S. as refugees. The warrant yielded approximately 105 pounds of marijuana, $51,848 in cash and six firearms, police said. Copyright 2022 WKYT. Yet, within three years, investigators crippled thedrug ring and sent the father and son and two dozen of their associates to federal prison. In the past week, a McKracken County grand jury indicted 23, and earlier this week a grand jury indicted several other people related to the case, said Laird. Updated: May. Another report previously ranked Kentucky as the 12th highest for drug usage, and now, the CDC data is showing a 13.55% increase in drug overdoses from 2020 to 2021. A traffic stop on I-65 southbound early Saturday morning near Elizabethtown led to the discovery of over 100 pounds of marijuana, according to Kentucky State Police . Investigators were listening when Pack called boyfriend Jose Prieto. Hall had been on the run for several weeks when Louisville Metro Police say they caught up to himon Jan. 31, 2017, inhis white Dodge Durango and triedto stop himin the 4700 block of Dixie Highway. Agents who monitored Jose Prieto's movements and phonesay Pack became entwined in a romantic relationship with him. Police stopped the car, and a drug-detecting dog sniffed out 40 pounds of meth. NEW CLOSER LAW ENFORCEMENT PARTNERSHIPS IN WESTERN KENTUCKY RESULT IN MOST SIGNIFICANT DRUG SEIZURE IN OWENSBORO HISTORY. In December, a judge sentenced Jose Prieto to serve eight years and one month in federal prison. Washington Federal prosecutors unsealed criminal charges against 28 members and associates of the Mexican Sinaloa Cartel including the three sons of former drug lord Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn accusing them of orchestrating a transnational fentanyl trafficking operation into the United States. FLOYD COUNTY, Ky. (WSAZ) - Three people were arrested Monday after drugs, including fentanyl, were found at a home in Allen, the Floyd County Sheriff's . Anytime we can take this much methamphetamine, fentanyl and firearms off the streets it is huge! The Paducah Police Department is asking for help locating those who have not yet been arrested. February 08, 2022 12:09 PM. "His goal was to try and find what we call the plug, the source of supply that gets you power and control," the lead investigator told The Courier Journal. On Friday, the Treasury Department also announced sanctions against two Chinese companies for their role in supplying the precursor chemicals. HAZARD, Ky. (WYMT) - Wednesday morning, troopers with Kentucky State Police Post Hazard and deputies with the Leslie County Sheriffs Office arrested 14 people in a drug bust, with seven more wanted. After several shots hit into Bowman's chest, his car struck a telephone pole and fence before coming to rest against a house near South 25th Street and Burwell Avenue. An investigation that began in January resulted in the arrest of area drug distributors and their sources of supply. OWENSBORO, Ky. - An Owensboro Drug Trafficking Organization is behind bars and charged with multiple felonies after being caught with 151 pounds of methamphetamine, 3.5 pounds of counterfeit pills with suspected deadly fentanyl, and other drugs, announced United States . Her passenger hopped out of the car, walked around and leaned in to talk to her from the driver's side window. That associate would deliver the drugs to a shipper, someone designated to get the drugs to Louisville andother destinations. Police said a total of 23 people were charged during the 18-month investigation, with 14 arrests this week. In a photo posted on her Facebook page, she is smiling with her young son and daughter. First published on April 14, 2023 / 11:53 AM. Her body was found July 5, 2018, on the floor of her casino hotel room with a gunshot to the head. But federal prosecutors contended during a bond hearing that he mainly used his auto business to hide his real income from selling drugs. He also started a business buying and selling used cars. He received an honorable discharge in 2008 and headed to college, earning a master's degree in accounting. Hallpumped the gas and struck a police car. Authorities with several police agencies assisted, including Dayton Police Department, Ft. Thomas Police Department, Drug Enforcement Administration, Newport Police Department, Covington Police Department, Cincinnati Police Department, Kentucky Probation and Parole, Campbell County Police Department and the Campbell County Sheriffs Department. The potential penalty for the offense charged is a prison term of 10 years to life, a fine of not more than $10,000,000, and not less than 5 years of supervised release. We first found a heavy police presence near Covert Avenue. RACELAND, KY (WOWK) - A man is facing multiple charges after a traffic stop led to a drug bust in Greenup County. Additionally, investigators said they seized 358 grams of crystal meth, 289 fentanyl pills, 64 grams of fentanyl powder, 4.6 grams of heroin, 11.3 grams of cocaine, 2,248 grams of marijuana, three loaded firearms and more than $11,000 in cash. As a child in Cuba, Jose Prieto Jr.'s family tossed into turmoil when Fidel Castro overthrew the government in 1959. In-state methamphetamine production has become a significant issue in Kentucky. In Louisville, he became a silent partner for Good Wheels auto repair shop on SouthSeventhStreet, southwest of downtown. Mar 29, 2012 ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky. (WDRB) -- Police in Hardin County have announced the arrest of nearly two dozen and have issued an arrest warrant for eight other people. Greenhill, 40, teamed with his brother, Jamarr Greenhill, 38, to summongang members from Detroit tocapitalizeon Louisville'saddiction crisis, which handed them a solid customer base. The DEA Evansville HIDTA Resident Office is committed to working with the Owensboro Police Department and our other federal, state, and local partners to keep our communities safe by investigating and arresting violent drug traffickers. Several agencies including, the DEA Criminal Diversion Group, the Kentucky Attorney General's Office, Barbourville Police, and several other departments helped to arrest the following people: Jose Luis Barata Vazquez, Alexey Barata Hernandez, Yoleisys Reyes Castillo, Dioslen Jimenez Ortiz, Kaid Rogers, Allison Renee Rogers, Michael King, Christopher King, Floyd Barker, Sheila Barger, and Samuel Barger. By. The conspirators were said to be distributing oxycodone in Madison, Estill, Clay, and Laurel counties from September 2019 to March 2022. The two men, identified as Cody Dennis, 33, of Lexington, KY, and Cole Salyers, 35, of Georgetown, KY, were arrested and taken to the Floyd County Jail. Please enter valid email address to continue. 1:54. With Goodman in jail,Laura Dawn Pack, 36,stepped in to pickup drug shipments for the organization. According to the Justice Department, between August 2021 and August 2022, 107,735 people died of drug overdoses in the United States, two-thirds primarily from fentanyl. The methamphetamine seized had a street value of almost 7 million dollars and could have provided enough dosage units to fill a capacity crowd at a professional football stadium four times over! This affects every small town; small, medium, and large, Laird said. 20 years ago, marijuana was the most commonly abused illicit drug in Kentucky. Both SWAT teams were able to safely secure the two locations and locate some of the wanted persons, Laird said. Investigators suspect that during 2016-2018 drug ring members alsowere involved inat least four deaths in Michigan, Kentucky and Mississippi. This investigation is undoubtedly the most significant narcotics investigation in our departments history, which speaks to the magnitude of the drug epidemic in the Owensboro Metropolitan Area. Quenton Hall, an alleged Greenhill drug courier known as "Q-Tip," gunned down 27-year-old Fernandez Bowman on Dec. 2, 2016, near Algonquin Park. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. He joined the U.S. Air Force and served a tour in Iraq, latervolunteering to go back in place of a friend who had a family hardship. They also admitted tomoney laundering due to the evidence unearthed by the DEA andInternal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation. Authorities with several police agencies assisted, including Dayton Police Department, Ft. Thomas Police Department, Drug Enforcement Administration, Newport Police Department, Covington Police Department, Cincinnati Police Department, Kentucky Probation and Parole, Campbell County Police Department and the Campbell County Sheriffs Department. Traffickers should take heed to keep their poison out of Daviess County and the Western District of Kentucky, said U.S. Attorney Russell Coleman They disregard at their own peril as federal, state, and local law enforcement here stand united to take their dope and send them to federal prison. A trusted shipper would then deliver the drugs and the Prietoassociate would leave the hotel with the drug payment. He was "fronting" drugs loaning sometraffickers drugsbefore they paid for them. In 2016, the cartel issuedJose Prieto an ultimatum: Work for them selling their drugs or be killed. Announcing the charges on Friday, Attorney General Merrick Garland and Justice Department officials laid the loss of hundreds of thousands of American lives from fentanyl squarely at the feet of the defendants. The police department requested a search warrant for a residence in the 700 block of Poplar Flat Road. 15 Best Amazon Clothing Brands Including Closet Staples and Statement Pieces, Memorial Day Sales 2023: The Best Early Memorial Day Deals You Can Shop Now, 45 Best Wedding Gifts That Are Way More Unique Than a Blender, 25 Trendy Amazon Spring Fashion Finds You'll Want in Your Closet ASAP. Daniel Lindsey, 45, was arrested Friday and booked into the Nelson County Detention Center and held on a $10,000 bond. Partygoers scrambled in another direction toward an alley. This investigation highlights ATFs work with our law enforcement partners to combat criminal organizations and to make Daviess County a safer place to live., The Owensboro Police Department remains committed to getting narcotics and dangerous offenders off the streets of Owensboro. Said Owensboro Police Chief Art Ealum. Just before 2 p.m. Monday, deputies spotted a woman with an active warrant driving near . large ongoing fentanyl trafficking investigation, Kentucky drug trafficking operation busted, over $2M and 10,000 pills seized, Drug disposal program aims to prevent addiction in Kentucky, DEA nets over 10K pounds of unused drugs in Kentucky takeback event. fefemer. All rights reserved. Officials from the Kentucky Attorney Generals Office, the Barbourville Police Department, the Clay County Sheriffs Office, and the Manchester Police Department worked with Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) investigators, resulting in Thursdays grand jury indictment in London. 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