Meth Kingpin Pleads Guilty

A 42-year-old man from Southwest Virginia has pled guilty to his role in a massive methamphetamine trafficking operation that brought the deadly drug from Atlanta to the region.

Robert Edward Bowman, 42, entered his plea in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon, where he faces charges of conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.

According to Assistant United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee, Bowman was part of a methamphetamine conspiracy that transported and distributed multiple pounds of crystal methamphetamine between Atlanta, Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia.

The investigation, which involved multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and local police departments, has already led to the convictions of nine other individuals.

To date, Brandin Hyde, Dawn Rossalyn Vincente, Summer Deborah Booher, Dakota Wayne Barker, Carrie Taylor, Jeffrey Bruce Bartley, Stacey Lee Doane, Melissa Mendora Harless and Connie Diane Strouth have each pled guilty to one count of conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.

United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. expressed his concern over the growing problem of methamphetamine addiction in the region, which he says can lead to property crime, domestic abuse, child neglect and other devastating crimes.

The investigation of the case continues, with authorities working to dismantle the entire trafficking operation and bring all those involved to justice.

Assistant United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee is prosecuting the case for the United States.

Statement from the United States Attorney: ‘We are seeing large amounts of methamphetamine brought into Southwest Virginia from areas outside of the Commonwealth and we must continue to work to put a stop to it,’ said United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr.