Beaver County Residents Charged in Heroin and Fentanyl Trafficking Scheme

PITTSBURGH – Six Beaver County residents have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on a charge of violating federal narcotics laws, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.

The one-count indictment named:

• Samuel McCracken, 28, of New Brighton, Pennsylvania;
• Wayne McCracken, 31, of Ambridge, Pennsylvania;
• Jeffrey Rogers, 34, of Ambridge, Pennsylvania;
• Dorothy McCracken, 58, of Ambridge, Pennsylvania;
• Breanna Perdue, 23, of New Brighton, Pennsylvania; and
• Jazmine Sellers, 27, of Ambridge, Pennsylvania, as defendants.

According to the indictment, from in and around July 2016, and continuing thereafter to in and around December 2016, the defendants conspired with each other, and others both known and unknown, to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl.

For Samuel and Wayne McCracken, the law provides for a minimum sentence of a term of imprisonment of ten (10) years, and a maximum total sentence of a term of imprisonment for life and a fine not to exceed $10,000,000, or both. For Jeffrey Rogers, the law provides for a minimum sentence of a term of imprisonment of five (5) years, and a maximum total sentence of a term of imprisonment of not more than forty (40) years and a fine not to exceed $5,000,000, or both. For the remaining defendants, the law provides for a maximum total sentence of a term of imprisonment of not more than twenty (20) years, a fine not to exceed $1,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorneys Conor Lamb and Katherine A. King are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

A federally administered Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. The task force is headed by the Drug Enforcement Administration and is comprised of members drawn from the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, Ambridge Police Department, New Brighton Police Department, Beaver Police Department, Aliquippa Police Department, Moon Township Police Department, Wilkinsburg Police Department, West Mifflin Police Department, Allegheny County Police Department, Duquesne Police Department, Munhall Police Department, Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, and the Pennsylvania State Police. The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.

An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.