Federal Grand Jury Indicts Logan County Felon for Methamphetamine and Fentanyl Trafficking and Firearms Offenses

Bowling Green, KY – A federal grand jury in Bowling Green, Kentucky, returned an indictment on March 13, 2024, charging a Logan County man with methamphetamine and fentanyl trafficking, possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.  

U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge R. Shawn Morrow of the ATF Louisville Field Division, and Director Tommy Loving of the Bowling Green/Warren County Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (AHIDTA) Drug Task Force made the announcement.

According to the indictment, on February 15, 2024, in Warren County, Kentucky, Joshua O. Duncan, 39, possessed with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine mixture and 400 grams or more of fentanyl mixture. Duncan is also charged with possessing a Smith and Wesson .38 caliber revolver in furtherance of his drug trafficking. In addition to the revolver, Duncan also possessed a Springfield Armory .45 caliber semiautomatic pistol, a Ruger .380 caliber semiautomatic pistol, and a Smith and Wesson .40 caliber semiautomatic pistol. Duncan was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses.

On August 21, 2018, in Logan Circuit Court, Duncan was convicted of first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, first offense, greater than 2 grams of methamphetamine.

On August 27, 2012, in Logan Circuit Court, Duncan was convicted of first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, first offense, cocaine. 

On March 11, 2010, in Logan Circuit Court, Duncan was convicted of first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, first offense, cocaine.

On March 21, 2024, Duncan made an initial court appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. If convicted, he faces a minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.

There is no parole in the federal system.

This case is being investigated by the ATF Bowling Green Field Office and the Bowling Green/Warren County Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (AHIDTA) Drug Task Force.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark J. Yurchisin II, of the U.S. Attorney’s Bowling Green Branch Office, is prosecuting this case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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