Luzerne County Residents Arrested For Distribution Of "Bath Salts", Alpha-PVP

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, announced today the unsealing of an indictment of seven Luzerne County residents on charges relating to the unlawful distribution of bath salts.

According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the following persons were taken into custody:

• • David Folweiler, 27 of West Pittston
  • Alan Folweiler, 21 of West Pittston
  • John Pearce, 29 of West Pittston
  • Frank Xavier Brennan, 33 of Kingston
  • Maura Kathio, 25 of Yatesville
  • Tiffany Pradel, 30 of Pittston Township
  • Marguerita Ann Davis, 59 of Pittston

The defendants were indicted by a federal grand jury in Scranton in August 2014 for their alleged participation in a bath salts trafficking and distribution ring led by Todd Morgans.  Morgans was arrested in July 2013, pled guilty and was sentenced to 135 months in federal prison in September 2014.  The indictment was sealed pending the arrest of the defendants.

David Folweiler, Alan Folweiler, Mauro Kathio, and Margherita Davis were arrested on November 12, 2014, and subsequently appeared before Magistrate Judge Thomas M. Blewitt David Folweiler was ordered detained pending trial. The others were released on bail with conditions.

John Pearce and Tiffany Pradel were arrested on November 14, 2014.  They appeared before Magistrate Judge Thomas M. Blewitt on November 17, 2014. Pearce and Pradel were ordered detained pending trial.

Frank Xavier Brennan surrendered to agents today and appeared before Magistrate Judge Thomas M. Blewitt.  Brennan was released on bail pending trial.

The maximum sentence for the offense is imprisonment for 20 years, a fine of $1,000,000 and supervised release for a period of at least 3 years.

This case was the result of a joint investigation between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Pennsylvania State Police, The United States Postal Inspection Service and the West Pittston, Jenkins Township, and the Pittston City Police Departments.

Bath salts are synthetic drugs which are analogues of controlled substances prohibited under federal statutes.  A controlled substance analogue is a drug which has not been scheduled under The Controlled Substances Act but has a similar chemical structure and a similar stimulant or hallucinogenic effect on a person’s central nervous system.  Such controlled substance analogues are treated as if the substance were the scheduled drug for prosecution and sentencing purposes.

Prosecution is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Francis P. Sempa.