Charleston Man Pleads Guilty To Heroin And Crack Cocaine Charges

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Jonathan Kennedy, 33, pleaded guilty today in federal court to two drug felonies – one related to his travel between Detroit, Michigan and Charleston, West Virginia, in aid of distributing heroin, and the second based on his use of a communication facility, his cellular telephone, in committing the crime of distribution of crack cocaine -- both in Charleston, West Virginia, where he resides.  In June 2014, Kennedy was indicted by a grand jury on one count of distributing heroin,  one count of distributing crack cocaine, one count of conspiracy to distribute heroin, one count of conspiracy to distribute oxymorphone and oxycodone, one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, and one count of tampering with a witness.  Kennedy faces up to nine years’ imprisonment when he is sentenced on October 14, 2014.

This case was investigated by the Charleston Police Department. United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston conducted today’s guilty plea hearing.

This case is being 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 and heroin.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill and heroin trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District.