FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 17, 2011
DETROIT MAN SENTENCED TO TEN YEARS IN PRISON ON FEDERAL OXYCODONE CHARGE
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Edward “Eddie” William Smith, 45, of Detroit, was sentenced to 10 years in prison by United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. for possession with intent to distribute oxycodone. Smith pleaded guilty in August. On May 3, the defendant was found in possession of 203 30-milligram oxycodone pills at an Ashford residence located in Boone County. At the time law enforcement arrived, the defendant was sitting in a vehicle parked at the residence. A confidential informant observed Smith and an associate counting oxycodone pills while inside of the vehicle. The 203 pills that the defendant admitted to possessing were submitted to the West Virginia State Police Forensic Laboratory and proved to contain oxycodone.
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.
This case was investigated by the West Virginia State Police. Assistant United States Attorney William King handled the prosecution.
# # #
