Amanda Mae Smith, 33, of Huntington, West Virginia, pleaded guilty today to federal charges of possession with intent to distribute heroin, following a violent 2015 incident that began with a shooting at her home and ended with one of the larger heroin seizures in the city that year.
The trouble erupted on August 20, 2015, when Huntington Police responded to gunfire at Smith’s residence on the 800 block of 26th Street. Officers found Smith and a male victim who had been shot in the leg during what was described as an attempted robbery. Amid the chaos, investigators moved quickly to secure search warrants for both the house and Smith’s vehicle.
Inside the vehicle, officers uncovered approximately 70 grams of heroin—enough to supply dozens of street-level deals. Smith later admitted in a sworn statement that she obtained the heroin from a supplier specifically for distribution. She also confessed that her residence had been used repeatedly as a hub for drug sales.
The case was investigated by a joint task force including the Huntington Police Department, the Cabell County Sheriff’s Department, and the FBI’s Huntington Drug Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams is prosecuting the case, which was heard by Chief U.S. District Judge Robert C. Chambers during a packed federal courtroom hearing.
Smith now faces up to 20 years in federal prison when she is sentenced on May 1, 2017. No plea deal was disclosed, and federal prosecutors emphasized the ongoing danger posed by open-air drug markets in the region. Authorities say Smith’s arrest is one of dozens in a broader crackdown on opioid distribution in the Southern District of West Virginia.
This prosecution is part of a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Office to dismantle heroin networks feeding the region’s addiction crisis. With overdose deaths soaring, federal and local agencies are tightening surveillance, increasing prosecutions, and targeting mid-level distributors like Smith who operate under the radar—until a bullet reveals the truth.
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- Pennsylvania Teen Pleads Guilty to Heroin Distribution in WV · Maryland
- Huntington Woman Gets 5 Years for Heroin Distribution · West Virginia
- Clarksburg Man Pleads Guilty to Heroin Distribution Conspiracy · West Virginia
Key Facts
- State: West Virginia
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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