Former Leesburg Man Pleads Guilty in Oxycodone Conspiracy That Led to Death

ALEXANDRIA, VA—George Washington Crane, V, 48, formerly of Leesburg, Virginia, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute oxycodone.

Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; and Michael L. Chapman, Sheriff of Loudon County, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by United States District Judge Liam O’Grady.

Crane was indicted on July 11, 2013, by a federal grand jury. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison when he is sentenced on December 20, 2013.

In a statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Crane admitted to purchasing oxycodone several times each week between 2008 and 2011 from sources on the street in Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland. Crane then brought the oxycodone to Leesburg, Virginia, where he distributed the pills primarily to high school students and recent graduates. Crane sold oxycodone from his residence and car to multiple customers daily.

According to the statement of facts, Crane distributed oxycodone on August 7, 2010, to a conspirator who later provided it to William Huff, age 20. Huff died on August 8, 2010, as a result of injecting the oxycodone that Crane distributed.

This case was investigated by FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Adam B. Schwartz is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae.