Buffalo Man Arrested On Drug Charge

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051 

BUFFALO, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Jason Yelder, 33, of Buffalo, NY, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with possession with intent to distribute five grams or more of methamphetamine. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum of 40 years and a $5,000,000 fine. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Adler, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, on March 30, 2016, the defendant was pulled over by Hamburg Police on Old Lakeshore Road after moving from a lane unsafely. A DMV check revealed that Yelder’s driver’s license had been suspended four times on four different dates. As a result, the defendant was arrested and taken into custody.

A subsequent search of Yelder’s vehicle, a Dodge Ram Pickup, uncovered a large amount of cash, the defendant’s passport, a digital scale, methamphetamine packaged for sale, drug packaging, needles, suspected HGH samples, hard drives, prescription pills and a small amount of powdered crack cocaine.     

The complaint is the culmination of an investigation by the Hamburg Police Department, under the direction of Chief Gregory Wickett and the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James J. hunt, New York Field Division.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.