May 26, 2015

Huntington Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing Heroin

HUNTINGTON, WV—A Huntington man who sold heroin to a confidential informant on multiple occasions in 2014 pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Tayvon Mykal Gaulds, 21, entered a guilty plea in federal court in Huntington admitting that he distributed heroin.

On November 12, 2014, Gaulds arranged to sell heroin to a confidential informant working at the direction of the Huntington FBI Drug Task Force. Gaulds met the informant in the 1800 block of 9 1/2 alley in Huntington and sold the informant approximately 5 grams of heroin in exchange for $650. Gaulds also distributed heroin to the informant on two other occasions in Huntington.

Gaulds faces up to 20 years in federal prison, and is scheduled to be sentenced on August 24, 2015.

The Huntington FBI Drug Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams is in charge of the prosecution.

This case is being 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 and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.