CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A Charleston man was sentenced today to 20 years in federal prison for a drug crime, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. David Ellis Murray, 48, previously pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, which is anywhere from 25 to 50 times more potent than heroin.
Murray admitted that on Oct. 20, 2016, the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted a traffic stop of his vehicle. During the stop, officers recovered 1.13 grams of fentanyl from Murray. He later admitted that he intended to distribute the fentanyl. Officers then executed a search warrant at Murray’s residence on Lewis Street in Charleston and seized an additional 6.62 grams of fentanyl, as well as 7.37 pounds of crystal methamphetamine and a gun.
The Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman is in charge of the prosecution. Chief United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of illegal drugs, including fentanyl. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of illegal drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
