Kearney Man Gets 20 Years in $4.3M Meth, Heroin Ring

Elgin Eugene Dothage, 41, of Kearney, Mo., is headed to federal prison for 20 years without parole after being sentenced in a $4.3 million methamphetamine and heroin distribution ring that poisoned communities across Jackson, Clay, Ray, Clinton, and Buchanan counties. The case, part of a sprawling federal crackdown, hits hard in Missouri’s northwest corridor, where drugs and guns fueled a criminal enterprise operating for half a decade.

Dothage, also known as “Butch,” pleaded guilty on June 9, 2017, to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and maintaining a drug premises. He admitted to distributing more than five kilograms of meth, storing and selling drugs from his residence, and arming himself with a 9mm Hi Point pistol and a Smith & Wesson .22-caliber during operations. His 20-year sentence will run consecutively to a nine-year state sentence in an unrelated case.

Jason Lee Kirtley, 45, of Excelsior Springs, Mo., was sentenced to 12 years and 11 months without parole and ordered to forfeit $28,800 in drug proceeds. Kirtley, who admitted to distributing 680.4 grams of meth, pleaded guilty on June 14, 2017. His conviction is one of 18 handed down in the conspiracy, which the DEA and Buchanan County Drug Strike Force began investigating in 2010.

The investigation traced the supply chain to Jose Luis Ruiz-Salazar, 39, his brother Gabriel Ruiz-Salazar, 35, and Gregory Bullock, 48—all of Kansas City, Mo.—who served as the primary meth suppliers. Gabriel Ruiz-Salazar was sentenced to 15 years and eight months; Jose Ruiz-Salazar and Bullock await sentencing. Together, the conspiracy moved at least 100 kilograms of meth and roughly three pounds of heroin between 2010 and 2015.

Court documents estimate the street value of the drugs at $4,359,600, based on conservative pricing: $1,200 per ounce for 50% pure meth and $2,500 per ounce for heroin. The operation reached deep into rural and urban areas alike, turning homes into stash houses and turning profits off addiction.

Other co-defendants already sentenced include Jason Daniel Davis, 44, of Liberty, Mo. (15 years, 8 months); Jackie R. Love, 60, of Excelsior Springs (6 years, 3 months); Anthony Ray Stevenson, 46, of Excelsior Springs (22 years, 6 months); Taylor Lee Syas, 25, of Polo, Mo. (8 years, 4 months); Paula Rae Scott, 48, of Excelsior Springs (4 years, 11 months); Bryan D. Carroll, 29, of Kansas City (6 years, 6 months); Ryan A. Battagler, 39, of Kearney (12 years); and Franklin Charles Carter, also known as “Frankie,” 28, of Grandview (8 years). The takedown marks one of the largest drug conspiracy prosecutions in recent Missouri federal history.

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