Christopher Priestley, 38, of Bloomingrose, Boone County, walked into federal court today and admitted he dealt heroin to a law enforcement informant four times over a five-month stretch in 2015. The guilty plea, entered in Charleston, W.Va., marks the latest conviction in a broader crackdown on opioid trafficking in southern West Virginia’s hard-hit coalfields.
Priestley sold the illicit drugs on four separate occasions between July and December 2015, directly to a confidential informant working under the supervision of the U.S. Route 119 Drug Task Force. Transactions occurred in Bloomingrose and the nearby community of Seth — both small towns where open-air drug trade has plagued residents for years.
Federal prosecutors, led by Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks, laid out the charges under the Southern District of West Virginia’s aggressive anti-drug initiative. Priestley’s actions fall squarely within the pattern of illicit opioid distribution that has fueled overdoses and devastated rural communities across the region.
At sentencing, scheduled for January 12, 2017, before U.S. District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin, Priestley faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. No plea agreement details were disclosed, and federal sentencing guidelines could weigh heavily based on quantity, frequency, and cooperation.
The investigation was spearheaded by the U.S. Route 119 Drug Task Force, a multi-agency unit targeting narcotics trafficking along one of the region’s primary drug corridors. The case highlights the federal government’s intensified focus on dismantling local distribution networks feeding the national opioid crisis.
United States Attorney Carol Casto, overseeing the Southern District, reaffirmed her office’s commitment to eradicating illegal drug markets. ‘We’re not just making arrests — we’re choking off supply,’ Casto stated in a press briefing. ‘Every dealer who pleads guilty is one less predator selling poison on West Virginia’s streets.’
Related Federal Cases
- Boone County Heroin Dealer Christopher Priestley Sentenced · West Virginia
- Boone County Heroin Dealer Robert Donavan Buzzard Pleads Guilty · West Virginia
- Boone County Heroin Dealer Robert Donavan Buzzard Sentenced · West Virginia
- Beckley Heroin Dealer Gets 27 Months · West Virginia
- Charleston Heroin Dealer Groom Gets 58 Months · West Virginia
Key Facts
- State: West Virginia
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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