New Castle Man Pleads Guilty In Oxycodone Trafficking Conspiracy

PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A resident of New Castle, Pa., pleaded guilty in federal court to violating the federal drug laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

David Wooley, 35, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy before United States District Judge Arthur J. Schwab.

In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that between September 2008 and June 2011, a drug ring operated in the New Castle area, selling highly-addictive narcotic pills containing oxycodone on the street to drug users. Larry Dorsey, a former New Castle resident who was living in Florida during the conspiracy, was the supplier for Wooley and others charged in this indictment. Wooley was a distributor of oxycodone as well as a drug and money courier between Pennsylvania and Florida. In September 2010, Wooley was stopped by police in North Carolina, on his way to Florida. A search of his car turned up $158,409 in cash, hidden inside a door. The evidence showed that the oxycodone, purchased for $14 a pill in Florida, was being resold in New Castle for up to $25 a pill.

Judge Schwab scheduled sentencing for Aug. 20, 2013 at 9:30 am. The law provides for a total sentence of not more than 20 years in prison, a fine of $1,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorney Gregory J. Nescott is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, the New Castle Police, and the Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of David Wooley.