Florida Man Who Illegally Mailed Nearly 20,000 Oxycodone Pills To West Virginia Sentenced To 14 Years In Prison

Ryan Moore received more than $330,000 cash in connection with pill distribution plot 

BECKLEY, W.Va. – A Florida man who illegally mailed packages containing thousands of powerful prescription painkiller pills to individuals located in West Virginia was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin.  Ryan D. Moore, of Hillsborough County, Fla., previously pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy to distribute oxycodone and conspiracy to commit money laundering.  From at least October 15, 2010 and April 27, 2012, Moore mailed packages containing a total of approximately 17,000 30-milligram oxycodone tablets to individuals located in West Virginia.  Moore, 32, sent more than one hundred express mail packages from U.S. Postal Service facilities located near Tampa, Fla. to a post office box at Glen Fork, W.Va.  Moore also mailed packages to a location in Calvin, Nicholas Co. All of the packages mailed by Moore contained oxycodone tablets. 

U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin said, “When tens of thousands of painkillers are illegally mailed in just over a year’s time, it says something about the extent of this district’s pill problem.  My office’s commitment to prosecute pill dealers will continue.”      

Moore received at least $330,000 in cash as payment for the packages that contained oxycodone tablets.  The cash was deposited by known individuals into Moore’s bank accounts during the scheme.  Moore knew that the cash payments deposited into his bank account were proceeds collected from illegal pill transactions.

Moore mailed packages containing oxycodone pills to two Wyoming County residents, Christopher and Jennifer Brooks, from at least March 2010 until April 27, 2012.  Christopher Brooks, 36, and Jennifer Brooks, 29, both of Glen Fork, W.Va., previously pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to distribute oxycodone and money laundering charges.  Mr. and Ms. Brooks received at least 130 express mail packages containing a total of approximately 17,000 30-milligram oxycodone tablets between October 15, 2010 and April 27, 2012.  As payment for the oxycodone pills, Mr. and Ms. Brooks deposited at least $300,000 cash into bank accounts that were owned by Moore. 

Mr. Brooks was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison in August.  Also in August, Mrs. Brooks was sentenced to seven years in prison for her role in the scheme. 

Moore also mailed packages containing oxycodone to convicted Nicholas County pill dealer, Keith Keiffer.  Keiffer, 32, of Calvin, Nicholas County, W.Va., received at least 15 express mail packages that contained a total of approximately 1,400 30-milligram oxycodone tablets from Moore.  Keiffer, in exchange for the oxycodone tablets, deposited thousands of dollars’ cash into Moore’s bank accounts.  Keiffer was sentenced to four years in federal prison in July.  

Moore’s sentence was imposed by United States District Judge Irene C. Berger. 

The Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Wyoming County Sheriff’s Department conducted the investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Haley Bunn handled 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 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is 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.