Ramon David Alston, Methamphetamine Trafficking, West Virginia 2021

A Georgia man has pleaded guilty to his role in a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking operation in Kanawha County, West Virginia. Ramon David Alston, 42, of Decatur, Georgia, admitted to selling 1-pound and multi-pound quantities of methamphetamine from his home to individuals in Charleston, West Virginia, and other parts of the state.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Alston sold methamphetamine to individuals in West Virginia as part of a drug trafficking organization (DTO) from 2020 until at least September 28, 2021. He admitted that he knew these customers intended to distribute methamphetamine in the Southern District of West Virginia.

On July 19, 2021, two of Alston’s West Virginia customers visited his residence separately, and he sold one of them a kilogram of methamphetamine. That customer was later stopped by police and arrested after being found in possession of the methamphetamine. Alston admitted to learning of the arrest and that the other customer had purchased approximately 6 pounds of methamphetamine from him over the course of the DTO conspiracy.

Alston is scheduled to be sentenced on August 8, 2022 and faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, as well as at least five years of supervised release and a $10 million fine.

The investigation was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the United States Marshals Service, the Charleston Police Department, the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT), and the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office.

The case is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, which was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.

A copy of the press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:21-cr-172.

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