Source: Office of United States Attorneys
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Tres Avery Davis, 36, of Charleston, was sentenced today to 14 years in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release, for possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing fentanyl. Davis admitted to his role in a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that operated in the Charleston area.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 7, 2023, Davis delivered approximately 2,000 blue pills containing fentanyl to a Kemp Avenue residence in Charleston. Law enforcement seized the pills at the residence on March 9, 2023. Davis admitted that he intended to distribute at least some of these pills to other people.
Davis is among 31 defendants convicted of federal crimes as a result of Operation Smoke and Mirrors, a major drug trafficking investigation that has yielded the largest methamphetamine seizure in West Virginia history. Law enforcement seized well over 400 pounds of methamphetamine as well as 40 pounds of cocaine, 3 pounds of fentanyl, 19 firearms and $935,000 in cash.
Davis dealt directly with a fentanyl supplier and personally acquired fentanyl pills for redistribution as part of his role in the DTO. Davis also recruited a co-conspirator to act as a courier to transport fentanyl pills from Columbus, Ohio, to Charleston, West Virginia.
Davis also distributed methamphetamine as part of his role in the DTO. He was responsible for 1.5 pounds of methamphetamine that were seized from a location in Charleston, and performed several methamphetamine transactions during the course of the investigation. Davis admitted that he sold methamphetamine in one-half pound to one pound quantities.
Davis has a long criminal history that includes more than a dozen prior convictions for such offenses as being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm, distribution of cocaine base, possession of a controlled substance, and domestic battery.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT), the West Virginia State Police, the West Virginia National Guard Counter Drug program, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, the Charleston Police Department, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office and the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office. MDENT is composed of the Charleston Police Department, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, the Nitro Police Department, the St. Albans Police Department and the South Charleston Police Department..
United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy B. Wolfe prosecuted the case.
The investigation was part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The program was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:23-cr-31.
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