Fourth Defendant Sentenced on Methamphetamine Charge

ABINGDON, VIRGINIA – A Southwest Virginia woman, who previously pled guilty along with three others to conspiring to manufacture methamphetamine, was sentenced today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. and Virginia Attorney General Mark R. Herring announced.

April Darlene Fields, 37, of Glade Springs, Virginia, previously pled guilty to one count of conspiring to attempt to manufacture methamphetamine and one count of aiding and abetting the manufacture and attempted manufacture of methamphetamine. Today in District Court, Fields was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison, three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay a $200 mandatory assessment and $599.47 in restitution to the Drug Enforcement Administration for hazardous waste clean-up.

“Methamphetamine continues to destroy lives and be an obstacle for success for so many in Virginia,” United States Attorney Fishwick said today. “When individuals manufacture this dangerous substance and put the lives of others in danger, law enforcement will act swiftly and responsibly, as we did in this case.”

“The manufacturing and abuse of methamphetamine remains a significant challenge for too many communities and too many families in the Commonwealth,” said Attorney General Herring. “The cooperation and collaboration between my team and U.S. Attorney Fishwick’s team continues to produce results that make Southwest Virginia families safer.”

Others previously convicted and sentenced as part of this conspiracy include: John Steven Fields, Shauna Danielle Davie, and Dana Lynn Vanmeter. Fields was sentenced to 12 months in federal prison, a mandatory assessment of $100, and was also held jointly and severally responsible for $599 restitution to the Drug Enforcement Administration.  Davie was sentenced to 2 years of probation, a mandatory assessment of $100 and was also held jointly and severally responsible for $599 restitution to the DEA. Vanmeter was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment and a mandatory assessment of $300 and $599 restitution to the Drug Enforcement Administration for the clean-up of a methamphetamine laboratory discovered at her residence.

Agencies involved in this investigation included the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Town of Abingdon Police Department, Town of Damascus Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.  Special Assistant United States Attorney M. Suzanne Kerney-Quillen, a Virginia Assistant Attorney General assigned to the Attorney General’s Major Crimes and Emerging Threats Section, is prosecuting the case for the United States.