ELKINS, WEST VIRGINIA - Five West Virginia residents are facing charges involving methamphetamine and enough fentanyl to kill 20,000 people, U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced.
The five were indicted by a federal grand jury sitting in Elkins on Aug. 18, 2020 on charges involving a drug distribution operation spanning Maryland and West Virginia. The object of the conspiracy was to distribute at least 5 grams of methamphetamine and at least 40 grams of fentanyl. They are:
• Joshua Lee Rutherford, 32, of Linn, West Virginia
• Kevin Wayne Fultz, 31, of Maysville, West Virginia
• Betty Arlene Chapman, 42, of Cabins, West Virginia
• Joshua Aaron Roy, 35, of Maysville, West Virginia
• Kelsey Morgan Ault, 26, of Maysville, West Virginia
The crimes are alleged to have occurred in Grant County and elsewhere from the fall of 2019 to January 2020.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen D. Warner is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Potomac Highlands Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
