Jamestown Men Arrested On Methamphetaine Charges

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051
 
BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Ernest Clayburn Cauley, Jr., 26, and Zackiel Leonard Fields, Jr., 22, both of Jamestown, NY, were arrested and charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul C. Parisi, who is handling the case, stated that the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Jamestown Metro Drug Task Force (JMDTF) have been investigating a suspected drug trafficking organization, primarily involving methamphetamine, in the Jamestown area. According to the complaint, the defendants, Cauley and Fields, are the main suppliers of methamphetamine to the organization.

In addition, defendant Fields was identified by the U.S. Postal Service as a person who had purchased thousands of dollars of postal money orders with cash at post offices in the Jamestown area. Lacking any apparent legitimate occupation or employment, the conduct by Fields and others of converting large sums of cash, as much as $500,000 or more, into postal money orders over the last 18 months, raised suspicions.

The defendants were arrested on November 6, 2017, following an alleged drug transaction during which Cauley and Field received a quantity of suspected methamphetamine. The defendants, driving in separate cars, were pulled over by police and arrested. Suspected methamphetamine was found in the car in which Fields was riding.

The defendants made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah J. McCarthy and are being held pending detention hearings scheduled for December 4, 2017. 

The complaint is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Adam S. Cohen, and the Jamestown Police Department, under the direction of Chief Harry Snellings. 

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.