Two men appear in Federal court for heroin crimes

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Two men appeared in federal court today for heroin crimes, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Kevin Brown, 32, of Huber Heights, Ohio, was sentenced to two years and three months in federal prison for possession of heroin with intent to distribute. In a separate drug prosecution, Christopher E. Butts, 42, of Charleston, pleaded guilty to distribution of heroin.

On June 29, 2015, an officer with the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted a traffic stop on a rental vehicle Brown was driving. Brown gave a false name and false identification to the officer, but consented to a search of the vehicle. Inside the vehicle, the officer found heroin, cocaine, and marijuana, along with empty capsules and a Magic Bullet mixer which had been used to process heroin for distribution.  

In a separate prosecution, Butts admitted that on May 24, 2016, he sold heroin to a confidential informant working with the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team. The drug deal took place at the corner of Delaware Avenue and Randolph Street in Charleston. Butts further admitted that he sold drugs to a confidential informant again the next day. On May 26, 2016, law enforcement executed a search warrant at the residence where Butts was staying. During the search, officers seized over six grams of heroin from Butts that was in his pocket, a firearm located near his feet, and cash from the residence. Officers additionally located approximately 75 grams of heroin behind the couch in the residence. All of the heroin recovered in the search was field tested by law enforcement and came up positive for the presence of fentanyl, which is anywhere from 25 to 50 times more potent than heroin. Butts faces up to 20 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on November 10, 2016.

The Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team investigated these cases. Assistant United States Attorney Haley Bunn is in charge of the prosecution of Brown. United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed Brown’s sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman is responsible for the prosecution of the Butts case. The plea hearing for Butts was held before United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin.

These cases are 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 trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.

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