Wyandotte Man Convicted in Meth Conspiracy

A federal jury has found Adam Douglas Sherwood, 43, of Wyandotte, guilty of running a methamphetamine distribution ring across northeastern Oklahoma. Convicted Thursday on charges of drug conspiracy, possession of meth with intent to distribute, and three counts of unlawful use of a communication facility, Sherwood now faces years behind bars when sentenced on March 25, 2022, before U.S. District Judge Claire V. Eagan.

The evidence presented at trial showed Sherwood was deep in the trade from January 2018 through January 2021, moving between 50 and 500 grams of meth as part of a tight-knit drug conspiracy. On May 23, 2020, he and coconspirator Kenneth Rosenberg aided and abetted each other in possessing meth with intent to distribute. During a ten-day stretch from May 13 to May 23, 2020, Sherwood used his cellphone three times to set up drug transactions—digital breadcrumbs federal prosecutors say sealed his fate.

The operation came crashing down in the early hours of May 23, 2020, when Tulsa Police pulled over a vehicle linked to a shots-fired incident. Inside were Sherwood, driver Kenneth Rosenberg, and a third occupant. Officers spotted a can of beer near Sherwood and a gun holster on the center console. A search revealed a Lorcin Engineering .380 ACP pistol and a Sturm, Ruger & Co. 22 WMR revolver stashed beneath the console. Also recovered: a green zippered pouch with empty baggies, residue-laced packaging, a digital scale, and drug storage containers.

On Sherwood’s person, officers found a clear plastic baggie containing a brownish crystalline substance that tested positive for methamphetamine. They also seized $226 in cash. Rosenberg was found with approximately $1,300. Both men were arrested at the scene. The weapons, drugs, and paraphernalia painted a clear picture of a mobile drug operation with violent potential.

Rosenberg, already tied to the conspiracy, pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and was sentenced on October 25, 2021, to 60 months in federal prison. Prosecutors emphasized that the network supplied meth to buyers across Northeast Oklahoma in exchange for cash, feeding addiction and destabilizing communities.

The investigation was a joint effort by the Tulsa Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Miami Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin G. Bish and Thomas E. Duncombe handled the prosecution. Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson stated, ‘A jury held Adam Sherwood accountable for conspiring to distribute and distributing methamphetamine. Illicit drug operations too often result in violence and further economic depression in struggling neighborhoods. Thankfully, multi-agency law enforcement teams are working together, as they did in this case, to dismantle drug operations that endanger communities in northeastern Oklahoma.’

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