Grand Jury Indicts Washington County Man for Distributing Heroin and Fentanyl

PITTSBURGH - A resident of the City of Washington, Washington County, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of distributing and possessing with intent to distribute quantities of heroin and fentanyl, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.

The six-count indictment, returned on June 28 and unsealed today, named Jerome “Bubba” Barnes, 32, of Washington, Pennsylvania, as the sole defendant.

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Washington County District Attorney’s Office have worked intensively to disrupt large-scale fentanyl and heroin traffickers, like Bubba Barnes,” stated U.S. Attorney Song. “By deputizing a Washington County prosecutor to bring federal charges, we have added another dimension to our cooperative efforts to reduce overdose deaths.”

“This indictment and arrest demonstrates what law enforcement can do to eliminate the deadly poisons being sold in our communities,” said Washington County District Attorney Gene Vittone. “Law enforcement at all levels – municipal, county, state and federal - were involved in the investigation and apprehension of this defendant. Working together, we are better able to eliminate this deadly threat to families and neighbors.”

According to the indictment presented to the court, Barnes distributed and possessed with intent to distribute quantities of heroin and fentanyl between April and June of 2017.

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 30 years in prison, a fine of $2,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.

Yesterday, United States Magistrate Judge Robert C. Mitchell ordered the defendant to remain in federal custody, upon consideration, in part, of the June 6, 2017 Order of District Judge Nora B. Fischer detaining Barnes for allegedly violating his federal supervised release on his prior federal drug convictions.

Special Assistant United States Attorney Jerome A. Moschetta of the Washington County District Attorney’s Office is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

Task Force Officers with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Pennsylvania State Police and Washington County District Attorney’s Office Drug Task Force conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case.

An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.