FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 29, 2012
CALIFORNIA MAN SENTENCED TO 70 MONTHS IN PRISON FOR OXYCODONE POSSESSION
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Edwardo Manuell Forsythe, 38, of Winchester, Calif., was sentenced today to 70 months’ prison for aiding and abetting the possession with the intent to distribute a quantity of oxycodone and oxymorphone. Forsythe previously pleaded guilty in February. On August 22, 2011, a law enforcement officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle along Route 60 in Huntington, occupied at the time by the defendant and an associate. During the traffic stop, officers performed a pat-down search of Mr. Forsythe which subsequently revealed 100 30-milligram oxycodone tablets and 50 40-milligram oxymorphone tablets on his person. Following the traffic stop, law enforcement conducted a search of a Huntington-area hotel room that was rented by the defendant at the time. During the hotel room search, agents seized 2281 30-milligram oxycodone tablets and 150 40-milligram tablets that were stored in various containers around the room. Forsythe admitted to possessing the controlled substances.
The investigation was conducted by the Huntington Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Gregory McVey handled the prosecution. United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over today’s hearing.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by various federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, remain committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District.
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