Wheeling man convicted in Pittsburgh, PA to WV and OH heroin distribution operation

WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – John D. McKee, 30, of Wheeling, was convicted of heroin trafficking today in federal court, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.

McKee participated in a drug trafficking operation in which heroin was transported across state lines from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to locations in West Virginia and Ohio for redistribution and sale. McKee was among six individuals charged in an 18-count federal indictment in June 2015.

McKee, along with other individuals, sold heroin in January 2015 near a private elementary school in Marshall County, West Virginia. He pled guilty today to one count of “Aiding and Abetting the Distribution of Heroin within 1,000 feet of a Protected Location.” He faces between one and forty years in prison and a fine of up to $2,000,000. 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. Attorney Stephen Vogrin prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Marshall County Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated.

U.S. Magistrate Judge James E. Seibert presided.