Two Detroit Men Sentenced to Prison for Roles in Huntington Methamphetamine Trafficking Organization

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Today, Talon Aaron McIntosh, also known as “Trey” and “T,” 28, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced to eight years and one month in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and Mario Alonzo Pettway III, also known as “Mike,” 23, of Detroit, was sentenced to six years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, each for distribution of a quantity of mixture and substance containing methamphetamine. Both men admitted to their roles in a drug trafficking organization (DTO) responsible for distributing large quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl in the Huntington area.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 3, 2023, McIntosh sold a half-pound of methamphetamine for $1,000 to a confidential in Huntington. McIntosh admitted to that transaction and to selling approximately 439 grams of methamphetamine to a confidential informant for $2,000 in Huntington on September 7, 2023.

On October 3, 2023, Pettway sold approximately 2 ounces of methamphetamine to a confidential informant for $200 in Nitro. Pettway admitted to that transaction and to selling a total of approximately 8 grams of fentanyl to the confidential informant in St. Albans on three occasions between April 13, 2023, and May 2, 2023. Pettway further admitted to selling approximately 29 grams of methamphetamine to the confidential informant in St. Albans on June 26, 2023.

McIntosh and Pettway admitted that they participated in the DTO from at least February 2023 through November 2023. McIntosh and Pettway also admitted that on August 14, 2023, McIntosh arranged for Pettway to distribute approximately 55 grams of methamphetamine and 3.5 grams of fentanyl to a confidential informant in Huntington.

On November 15, 2023, law enforcement officers arrested McIntosh and Pettway and executed search warrants at two residences in Nitro. McIntosh and Pettway each admitted that the DTO conspirators used the residences to store and distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl. Officers seized approximately 206 grams of methamphetamine and a Ruger LCP .380-caliber pistol and ammunition at one of the residences, and seized 11 firearms and quantities of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and ammunition at the other residence. Pettway admitted that he possessed the firearms and intended to sell the methamphetamine and fentanyl seized at the second Nitro residence.

McIntosh and Pettway are among 27 individuals indicted in a 53-count indictment that charges the defendants with distributing methamphetamine and fentanyl transported from Detroit in Huntington and other locations within the Southern District of West Virginia.

McIntosh and Pettway are also among 21 defendants who have pleaded guilty in the main case. One other of the 27 indicted individuals pleaded guilty to a related offense in a separate case. The indictment against the remaining defendants is pending. An indictment is merely an allegation and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Cabell County Sheriff’s Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT), the West Virginia State Police, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. MDENT is composed of the Charleston Police Department, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, the Nitro Police Department, the St. Albans Police Department and the South Charleston Police Department.

United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers imposed the sentences. Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph F. Adams and Stephanie Taylor prosecuted the case.

The investigation was part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The program was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.

A copy of this 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. 3:23-cr-180.

###