Centreville Man Indicted on Crack Cocaine Charge

On March 23, 2011, a federal grand jury sitting in East St. Louis returned an indictment charging Ronald L. Tolliver, 41, of Centreville, Illinois, with possession with the intent to distribute crack cocaine, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. The indictment was originally suppressed but has since been unsealed by the court. If convicted, Tolliver faces a minimum term of five years' imprisonment to a maximum sentence of 40 years' imprisonment, a fine of up to $2,000,000, and at least four years of supervised release.

An indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The case resulted from the efforts of the WAVE (Working Against Violent Elements) Task Force, which focuses its efforts on combating violent crime in East St. Louis, Washington Park, and surrounding communities. WAVE was formed in November 2009, and is a collaboration of law enforcement officers from the Illinois State Police, the Metropolitan Enforcement Group of Southwestern Illinois (MEGSI), the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department, the East St. Louis Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and the United States Marshals Service. The WAVE Task Force receives financial support through the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative, a nationwide federal program which endeavors to address gun-related violence. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) also participated in the investigation. This case is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Randy G. Massey for prosecution.