JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – David M. Ketchmark, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a Columbia, Mo., man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for distributing heroin, which resulted in the death of another Columbia man.

Ellison Lee Hutchison, Jr., also known as “Lucky,” 36, of Columbia, was charged in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Jefferson City, Mo., on Wednesday, June 27, 2012.

The federal indictment alleges that Hutchison distributed heroin to Maximillion Shackelford on Jan. 23, 2012, and that Shackelford died as a result of using that heroin.

Under federal statutes, Hutchison would be subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison without parole if convicted of the offense, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole.

Ketchmark cautioned that the charge contained in this indictment is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven R. Berry. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Boone County, Mo., Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, the Columbia, Mo., Police Department, the Boone County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department and the Boone County, Mo., Medical Examiner’s Office.

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