Two Columbus men have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for their involvement in drug and human trafficking operations, as well as their roles in two deaths. In U.S. District Court, Dustin A. Speakman received a sentence of 276 months, while Tyler Bourdo was sentenced to 300 months.
Speakman, 35, admitted to conspiracy charges related to distributing controlled substances near an elementary school and acknowledged his role in a violent death during his operation of a drug distribution house. Meanwhile, Bourdo, 31, also pleaded guilty to similar drug distribution charges and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking.
The case involves nearly two dozen individuals charged with crimes linked to large-scale drug and human trafficking rings in Columbus. Two defendants were found guilty after a jury trial last month. All 23 individuals involved have either been convicted or pleaded guilty.
Court documents reveal that from 2008 until June 2022, Patrick Saultz and Cordell Washington led the organization responsible for trafficking drugs such as fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana into Columbus. The drugs were used both for sale and coercion into sexual activities.
After being released from jail in 2022 where he met Saultz, Speakman joined the organization as a mid-level distributor operating out of residences on South Ogden and South Warren streets. He confessed to severely beating one of his drug runners in May 2022 before providing them with free drugs as compensation.
Bourdo managed a stash house on North Warren Street where he provided narcotics daily for use of the property. His plea agreement detailed an incident on October 14, 2021 when an individual died from overdose-related causes between his residence and another drug distribution location he supplied.
Acting U.S. Attorney Kelly A. Norris praised the investigation coordinated by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's task force including various law enforcement agencies like the Columbus Division of Police and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant United States Attorneys Timothy Prichard and Emily Czerniejewski are representing the government in this case.
This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) initiative aimed at dismantling high-level criminal organizations through coordinated efforts among multiple agencies.
