A federal grand jury has indicted seven individuals in connection with methamphetamine distribution and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine across the Northern District of Alabama. This was announced by U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Drug Enforcement Administration Assistant Special Agent in Charge John M. Clayton.
The indictments, filed separately but relatedly in U.S. District Court, charge members of a drug trafficking organization based in Talladega. Four men from Talladega have been charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine: Flemmings Chatman, 41; LaDaraious Q. Brown, 32; Tramarcus Fomby, 29; and Robert Houston, Jr., 55. Additionally, three other men face charges for the distribution of methamphetamine: Kenneth Honneycutt, 30, from Birmingham; Elijah Brown, 35, from Tuscaloosa; and Brian J. Whatley, 45, from Talladega.
These legal actions are part of the efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF), an independent component of the U.S. Department of Justice established in 1982 to combat transnational organized crime and reduce illicit narcotics availability through a prosecutor-led multi-agency approach.
The investigation was spearheaded by the DEA and the Talladega County Drug Task Force with support from various law enforcement agencies including the 7th Judicial Major Crimes Unit, Talladega Sheriff’s Office, Talladega Police Department, West Alabama Narcotics Task Force, Pell City Police Department, Jasper Police Department, Oxford Police Department, Alabama State Probation Office, and the Alabama National Guard Counter Drug Task Force.
It is important to note that an indictment contains only charges and that a defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Alan S. Kirk.