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WHEELING — The Northern District of West Virginia saw a 27% increase in the number of criminal matters received for consideration, with charges brought against 300 defendants. Of the 300, 42% were drug-related.
“Notwithstanding a pandemic, our office concluded several major investigations,” U.S. Attorney Bill Powell said.
Some of the more notable cases in 2020 included the guilty plea of Reta Mays, who admitted murdering seven veterans and the assault of an eighth victim at the VA hospital in Clarksburg; the indictment of four men involved in the murders of three individuals, one of whom was kidnapped and taken across state lines in the Eastern Panhandle; and the guilty plea of Elizabeth Shirley, who admitted to kidnapping her daughter and retaining secret national defense documents.
There were also several large-scale drug distribution operations that were dismantled, thanks to the work of the district’s drug task forces, including the case of Jennifer Cuffman and 25 other defendants. The Cuffman case involved alleged traffickers from other states and West Virginia, trafficking drugs on Wheeling Island and the surrounding area.
Earlier this year in Morgantown, U.S. Attorney Powell announced that 25 people were charged in a drug trafficking operation that spanned from Mexico to California to Texas to West Virginia.
A large multi-state drug trafficking operation was halted after charges were filed in September. The “19th Street Enterprise” case was announced at a press conference in Martinsburg. The case involved 22 people from Philadelphia, Maryland, Delaware and West Virginia.
The district also successfully garnered a $50 million settlement with Wheeling Hospital Inc., involving allegations concerning improper compensation to referring physicians.
“In addition to the more publicized cases, many violent crimes, firearm offenses, child pornography, tax fraud, election fraud, health care fraud, among other crimes were prosecuted this past year,” Powell said. “Numerous civil enforcement actions and prison litigation matters were also successfully concluded.”
Info: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndwv.
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