FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 23, 2012
LOGAN COUNTY MAN SENTENCED TO TEN YEARS IN PRISON FOR SELLING OXYCODONE
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Wayne A.Vance, 39, of Verdunville, Logan County, W.Va., was sentenced today to ten years in prison by United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. for distribution of oxycodone. Vance previously pleaded guilty in November. The defendant admitted that during June 2008 through March 29, 2010, he along with several known associates, conspired with each other to distribute and sell oxycodone for profit in and around Verdunville. Vance also admitted that the oxycodone distribution primarily occurred at a Verdunville residence which he owned, but also took place at several other known locations in and around Logan County. On March 25, 2010, Vance sold seven 80-milligram oxycodone pills to an informant working for the US 119 Task Force in exchange for $700 cash. The defendant also admitted that he and his associates maintained only a small amount of oxycodone at the Verdunville residence in the event that law enforcement agents arrived at the location. As part of his plea agreement, Vance stipulated that on December 9, 2009, aided and abetted by an associate, he distributed four and one-half 80-milligram oxycodone pills to an informant working for the US 119 Task Force in exchange for $600 cash.
This investigation was conducted by the US 119 Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney William King handled the prosecution.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by various federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, remain committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District.
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