News Release
May 24, 2004

DEA Task Force Crushes Cincinnati Cocaine Ring

Firearms seized during the investigation.

Cincinnati, Ohio- On May 24, 2004, Gregory Lockhart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Gary W. Oetjen and Cincinnati Chief of Police Thomas H. Streicher announce a sweeping blow to cocaine and marijuana trafficking in the Greater Cincinnati area with the culmination of a year long narcotics investigation. This phase of the investigation concluded with the execution of twenty (20) federal search warrants and arrest warrants for eleven (11) major cocaine and marijuana traffickers. The early morning search warrants on May 24th resulted in the seizure of significant amounts of cocaine, marijuana, currency, firearms and bullet-proof vests signifying how substantial and dangerous this organization was to the public.

This investigation resulted in federal narcotics charges against:

• Steven Kidwell- 27 yoa, Cincinnati
• Julio Gallegos- 28 yoa, Cincinnati
• Stephanie Campbell- 25 yoa, Covington, KY
• Larry Winningham- 30 yoa, Cincinnati
• Gary Young- 30 yoa, Cincinnati
• Ray Thompson- 23 yoa, Cincinnati
• Shannon Young- 32 yoa, Cincinnati
• Alan Shelton- 49 yoa, Cincinnati
• Raymond Verouzo- 31 yoa, Cincinnati
• Ricky Trutillo- 32 yoa, Cincinnati
• Araceli Jiminez- 23 yoa, Cincinnati

This organization had a sophisticated smuggling and distribution network responsible for selling large amounts of marijuana and cocaine throughout the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky areas. The success of this investigation would not have been possible without the coordinated efforts and resources of the Cincinnati Police Department, Sharonville Police Department, Norwood Police Department, Boone County Sheriffs Department, Westchester Police Department, Covington, Kentucky, Police Department, Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and Identification, Florence Kentucky Police Department, Kenton County Kentucky Sheriffs Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Northern Kentucky Strike Force, Cleremont County Sheriffs Department and the Drug Abuse Resistance Task Force.

“The DEA is extremely proud and fortunate to have the caliber of law enforcement agencies as partners that we do throughout the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area. These coordinated efforts produce the highest level of investigations, which benefit all the residents throughout the area”, DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge Gary Oetjen.