Dayton man pleads guilty to meth & cocaine crimes, faces 15 to 25 years in prison

DAYTON, Ohio – The leader of a local methamphetamine and cocaine drug trafficking organization pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today. 

Adrian White, 40, of Dayton, admitted to conspiring to possess with intent to distribute the drugs.

The plea agreement includes a recommended sentence of 15 to 25 years in prison.

According to court documents, between at least February 2023 and January 2024, White was responsible for 15 kilograms of methamphetamine and 500 grams of cocaine via his drug trafficking organization.

White was observed transporting shoe boxes to and from a known stash house on Crestmore Avenue in Dayton.

During traffic stops of White and others, narcotics were found in orange Nike shoe boxes. For example, in January 2024, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of White for window tint violation and found him to be in possession of more than two kilograms of methamphetamine in one of the shoe boxes and 60 grams of cocaine in his vehicle.

While executing a subsequent federal search warrant at the stash house and at White’s residence on Valerie Arms Drive, agents discovered more than three kilograms of methamphetamine and an additional 72 grams of cocaine located throughout the house in a safe, the kitchen counter, a kitchen cabinet and a vent of the HVAC system. White kept an AK 47 style rifle near the front door. White also had approximately $20,500 in cash in his home.

A federal grand jury indicted White and two others in January 2024. Co-defendants Sonequa McGraw, 37, of Huber Heights, and William Bates, 36, of Trotwood, have also pleaded guilty in this case and await sentencing.

Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Orville O. Greene, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Detroit Division; Dayton Police Chief Kamran Afzal; Springfield Police Chief Allison Elliott and Clark County Sheriff Deb Burchett announced the guilty plea entered today before Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose. Assistant United States Attorneys Ryan A. Saunders is representing the United States in this case.

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, and gangs that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

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