Both are equally committed to ridding our community of the scourge of organized drug trafficking and keeping our citizens safe.. We know that nothing can repair the harm they've suffered or bring back the loved ones they have lost.". Though it worked for awhile, eventually WileyGreenhillstarted to run up a tab with the Prietos, according tocourt records. The judge agreed to denybond. LONDON, Ky. (LEX18) Agents across Kentucky arrested 12 people and confiscated more than 10,000 oxycodone pills. 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. Published: Apr. But the mother of a little girl and boynever made it out of her silver Ford Fusion. The individuals arrested during this investigation were responsible for peddling poison into Owensboro and our surrounding communities. This story was originally published March 15, 2022, 9:46 AM. According to the Somerset Police Department, the five-month investigation, which also. She told agents she got 10 pounds of meth weekly from Jose Prieto and would meet him or Louis Prietoat area hotels for money drops, including one involving $75,000. According to the complaints, on January 11, 2021, members of the DEA from multiple districts and local law enforcement conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle being operated by another suspected member of the Watkins DTO in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, as the vehicle travelled from Arizona toward the Western District of Kentucky. Agents wouldn't give names of suspects or reveal the states involved. Rattled residentsand many officers didnt know at the time of the Feb.1, 2018, shootout in Buechel, Kentucky, that the men inside the pickup were connected to a much largerdrug trafficking organization one that lured violent gangs from Detroit and ordered millions of dollars of methamphetamine fromMexicos infamous Sinaloa Cartel. Jose Prieto was 11 whenhis father hurried their family out of hishomeland and into the U.S. as refugees. All rights reserved. PADUCAH, Ky. (FOX 56) The Paducah Police Department updated the public on a large ongoing fentanyl trafficking investigation on Friday. 60 people were arrested in Kentucky after a United States Drug Enforcement Administration drug bust of more than 800 pounds of methamphetamine. The police werent able to say exactly how far the spread of this fentanyl trafficking ring went only that it was vast. After all the damage they levied personally or indirectly, Jose Prieto and his son quietly surrendered to police outside their West Coast homeson Aug. 13,2019. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. 1:13. The Paducah Police Department is asking for help locating those who have not yet been arrested. 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. Calhoun was also charged with possession with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense and being a felon in possession of a firearm. 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. (Courtesy: Appalachia HIDTA) The pair was taken into custody in June. Partygoers scrambled in another direction toward an alley. POLICE REPORT: Suspected drug . 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. Both SWAT teams were able to safely secure the two locations and locate some of the wanted persons, Laird said. 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. Louisville narcotics detectives teamed with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and soon zeroed in on drug trafficker Wiley Greenhill, who moved from Detroit to the Derby City to form adrug ring. Twenty people have been arrested in a monthslong drug investigation in Northern Kentucky, officials with the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force announced Thursday.An investigation that began in January resulted in the arrest of area drug distributors and their sources of supply.Investigators said seven search warrants were obtained, resulting in the 20 arrests.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.Arrested in the drug roundup were:Elijah Cravens of Newport, Ky.Morgan Taylor of Newport, Ky. Floyd Nelson of CincinnatiGlen Farmer of Dayton, Ky. Joseph Hansel of Dayton, Ky. Shannon Cutshaw of Dayton, Ky. Angela Kreig of Dayton, Ky. Jesse Hayes of Dayton, Ky.Chad Gemmer of Dayton, Ky. Chris Lykins of Dayton, Ky. Eric Campbell of Dayton, Ky. Josh Alford of Dayton, Ky.Kris Yeager of Erlanger, Ky. Theresa Engel of Erlanger, Ky.Crystal Warrix of Dayton, Ky.Kinberly Hayes of Dayton, Ky.Charles Widener of Covington, Ky.Eric Ashley of Dayton, OhioIsaac Benson of ClevelandDave McDaniel of Dayton, Ky. Its not just social media. "We are doing everything in our power, and using every authority we have, to bring those responsible to justice," he added. 18, 2021 at 3:51 PM PDT LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Metro Corrections Officers made a large drug bust while doing a home incarceration, or HIP check, which yielded drugs, guns and thousands of dollars in cash. LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - A gang of drug dealers accused of selling meth, fentanyl, and cocaine has been busted by FBI and Louisville Metro Police investigators. Lexington murder suspect offered 2 alibis. Investigators caught her with sevenpounds of meth and more than $44,000 in drug proceeds. 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. According to the Fivco Area Drug Enforcement (F.A.D.E.) As a child in Cuba, Jose Prieto Jr.'s family tossed into turmoil when Fidel Castro overthrew the government in 1959. LSD, MDMA, and GHB are found in Kentucky. EL MENCHO: A ruthless Mexican drug lords empire is devastating families with its grip on small-town USA. a gunman fired bullets into his face and head, A ruthless Mexican drug lords empire is devastating families with its grip on small-town USA, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. He established his own pipeline from Kentucky to California, bypassing his older brother. A trusted shipper would then deliver the drugs and the Prietoassociate would leave the hotel with the drug payment. Following the seizure of the narcotics in Oklahoma City, Willie Watkins was charged in a criminal complaint with conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine and 400 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl. If Jose Prieto worried she might spill secrets to police, he was right. ROLLA, Mo. These arrests follow a drug investigation by Kentucky State Police that began 18 months ago. Published: Apr. Jose Prieto sought out someone with a strong business background to help him earn money to pay off the cartel. According to the Henderson Police Department . Monday when they smelled the odor of marijuana. Copyright 2020 | Breaking911 All rights reserved, One of The Largest Drug Busts In Kentucky History, Man Dead After Being Found Shot In Car That Crashed Outside Los Angeles Hospital, WATCH LIVE: Biden Hosts Vigil For Coronavirus Victims At Lincoln Memorial. Every overdose that we respond to gets investigated, especially if it is fentanyl, Laird said. But federal prosecutors contended during a bond hearing that he mainly used his auto business to hide his real income from selling drugs. 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. Task Force, authorities conducted a search warrant at a home in Grayson, Kentucky where they found and seized nearly 1,000 doses of fentanyl, cocaine, firearms and more than $8,000 in U.S. currency. Police say Wesley Aaron Calhoun and Dennie A. Smith, both from Somerset, are facing charges of conspiracy to distribute, possession with intent to distribute. The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox. "It's no longer enough to protect our children from drug dealers in the park or on the street cornerbecause now those drug dealers ply their deadly trade on social media apps running on the phones in our kids' pockets," Monaco said. The picture that developeddepicts how Cuban refugee Jose Manuel PrietoJr., 56, built a drug ring in California that stretched from the West Coast northeastto Buffalo, New York, and south to Atlanta before leading his son, a U.S. Air Forceveteran,on a path to prison. 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. Reporter Beth Warren: bwarren@courier-journal.com; 502-582-7164; Twitter @BethWarrenCJ. The seizure includes 151 pounds of meth, which they say is. At the same time, Greenhill'sbrother, Jamarr Greenhill, cut ties and branched out on his own. Less than a month before her death, police stopped Stepp and two menat an airport in Arizona and found more than $20,000 hidden inside the lining of her suitcase. Kentucky Justice S01E01 Drug Bust Shootout. She put her affairs in order, including signing over custody of her son, and headed to a Tunica casino. 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. Goodman pleaded guilty in 2019 in federal court to meth trafficking and is serving a 10-year sentence. He also started a business buying and selling used cars. According to officials, the marijuana had a street value of more than $10 million. The news comes just one day after Garland and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco met with members of Mexican security officials in Washington, D.C. in part to discuss the fentanyl crisis. DEA agents led the three-year investigation anddubbed it "Operation Triple Crown," the pinnacle of thoroughbred racing, as they worked to track the pipeline's origins fromLouisville and Detroitback to the father-and-sonsuppliers in California. 36-year-old Amanda Barrett of Stinnett, 28-year-old Nicholas Begley of Hyden. The cartel routinely sent large shipments of meth across the border into California and from there, the Prietos coordinated the distribution across the country. LONDON, Ky. - An investigation into a Louisville-based drug trafficking operation led to 12 people being arrested.Officials from the Kentucky Attorney General's Office, the Barbourville Police Department, the Clay County Sheriff's Office, and the Manchester Police Department worked with Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) investigators, resulting in Thursday's grand jury indictment . THC is a psychoactive compound. Both were untrue, police say. First published on April 14, 2023 / 11:53 AM. The lead agent saiddrug ring members are suspected of hiringWilliamsonof Detroitas a hitman to silence Stepp, a drug courier with inside knowledge ofthe organization. All rights reserved. All rights reserved. In-state methamphetamine production has become a significant issue in Kentucky. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke). 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. They were listening when Louis Prieto told an associate that his fatherwas upset and in Louisville and that Wiley Greenhill's life was in danger, according to a transcript of court testimony. Updated on: April 14, 2023 / 7:23 PM The police chief said overdoses in Paducah have continued to rise year-over-year. He also later worked in the private sectoras an accountant. The conspirators were said to be distributing oxycodone in Madison, Estill, Clay, and Laurel counties from September 2019 to March 2022. Narcotics detectives soon stopped the truck near Derby and Carey avenues, seven miles northwest of the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. More suspected crimes linkedto the ring remain under investigation. We know they were supplying large amounts of fentanyl to this community, Laird said. Several agencies including, the DEA Criminal Diversion Group, the Kentucky. In Louisville, he became a silent partner for Good Wheels auto repair shop on SouthSeventhStreet, southwest of downtown. The investigation is continuing and additional charges and arrested are expected. According to the Johnson County Sheriff's Office, deputies executed a search warrant on Friday, Oct. 29, at the home of Edgar "Eddie" Castle, 53, in Sitka, Kentucky, after authorities were able to "make numerous controlled drug buys" at the home during the investigation. Two months after Bowman's slaying, the drug ring wassuspected of a revenge killing in Detroit. An investigation that began in January resulted in the arrest of area drug distributors and their sources of supply. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. James Lewis, 36, of Galveston, outstanding warrant. The case isn't over. The police department requested a search. When Greenhill's tab climbed to $400,000, Jose Prieto cut him off. According to the criminal complaints, between January 6, 2021, and January 11, 2021, Willie Watkins, age 30 of Owensboro, Kentucky coordinated the purchase of approximately 150 pounds of suspected methamphetamine with an unidentified male, located in the Los Angeles, California area, and counterfeit pills containing suspected fentanyl from a source in the Phoenix, Arizona area. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Bluegrass Crime Stoppers by calling (859) 253-2020, online atwww.bluegrasscrimestoppers.com, or through the P3 Tips app available atwww.p3tips.com. 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. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. On Friday, the Treasury Department also announced sanctions against two Chinese companies for their role in supplying the precursor chemicals. As a result of those search warrants, law enforcement seized additional methamphetamine, counterfeit pills containing suspected fentanyl, marijuana, firearms, and over $325,000 in United States Currency. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. 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. The University of Kentucky College of Public Health released a report earlier in 2022 analyzing the overdose deaths in 2021. Nearly 200 people die every day from fentanyl poisoning. 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