Feds Unite Against Violent Crime, Drug Trafficking in Tri-State

They move drugs and weapons like clockwork across invisible borders, leaving bodies and broken communities in their wake. Now, federal prosecutors and law enforcement in Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio are drawing a line in the ash-stained soil of Appalachia, launching a coordinated strike against the violent traffickers poisoning the Tri-State region.

On February 9, 2018, U.S. Attorneys Robert M. Duncan, Jr. (Eastern District of Kentucky), Michael B. Stuart (Southern District of West Virginia), and Benjamin C. Glassman (Southern District of Ohio) convened in Ashland, Kentucky, alongside top brass from the ATF, FBI, DEA, and local agencies to announce a new law enforcement working group. This coalition is laser-focused on dismantling networks behind violent crime and large-scale drug operations that have turned towns like Huntington, Ironton, Portsmouth, and Ashland into battlegrounds.

The initiative operates under the reinvigorated federal Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, a DOJ-backed strategy that merges enforcement, prevention, and reentry efforts to crush cycles of violence. The working group will meet regularly to share intelligence, prioritize prosecutions, and ensure the harshest penalties—federal or state—are leveraged against the most dangerous offenders, especially those using firearms or peddling lethal opioids.

‘If you are using firearms to commit acts of violence or illegally selling drugs – especially those that cause an overdose death – you are on notice,’ warned U.S. Attorney Duncan. ‘Your conduct will not be tolerated; and if it continues, you risk arrest, prosecution, and the forfeiture of your freedom.’

U.S. Attorney Stuart didn’t mince words: ‘The good people of the Tristate… have paid too high a price.’ He cited the chaos of addiction and gun violence that has hollowed out neighborhoods. ‘Now is the time to take our streets back,’ he declared, vowing to lock up violent offenders and dealers for as long as possible.

As Attorney General Jeff Sessions pushes to revive PSN nationwide, this Tri-State alliance signals a no-boundaries approach. ‘State lines don’t stop criminals,’ said Glassman. ‘They shouldn’t stop our law enforcement efforts, either.’ The message is clear: the feds are watching, they’re talking to each other, and they’re coming hard.

RELATED: 250 New Immigrant Cases Hit Texas U.S. Attys’ Office

RELATED: Tulsa Trio Face Federal Heat: Violence, Exploitation, and Fraud