Texas man admits to role in drug distribution operation

CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Kedrick Howard, of Dallas, Texas, has admitted to his role in methamphetamine, crack cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin drug distribution operation, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.

Howard, age 29, pleaded guilty today to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled Substances.” Howard admitted to working with others to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine base, cocaine hydrochloride, and fentanyl from the Spring of 2018 until October 2020.

Howard faces up to 20 years of incarceration and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zelda E. Wesley and Sarah E. Wagner are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The FBI's Northern West Virginia Drug Task Force in partnership with the Mon Metro Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.  The Task Forces have members from the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; West Virginia State Police; Monongalia County Sheriff's Office; and the Morgantown, WVU, Granville and Star City Police Departments.  The investigation was also assisted by the following law enforcement partners:  the Monongalia County Prosecutor’s Office; the FBI in Houston, Texas; the Houston Police Department's Multi Agency Gang Initiative; the United States Postal Inspection Service in Houston; and the FBI and DEA in Los Angeles, California.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael John Aloi presided.

Related case here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndwv/pr/25-people-indicted-drug-trafficking-operation-spanned-several-states