Acting United States Attorney Randolph J. Bernard announced that two men have been found guilty in a significant drug trafficking case in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. Lance Wade Cole, Jr., 53, from Martinsburg, and Damian Costello, 28, from Harpers Ferry, were convicted by a federal jury for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute fentanyl, acetyl fentanyl, methamphetamine hydrochloride, cocaine, and cocaine base.
The investigation revealed that Cole and Costello were part of a larger group involving over 80 defendants. The organization was led by Gary Brown, Jr., based in Baltimore. The operation involved more than 100 kilograms of fentanyl.
Before this verdict, seventy-seven defendants had already pleaded guilty. Of these, twenty-seven have been sentenced while fifty await sentencing. Some recent sentences include Gregory O’Brien Long, Jr., who received 120 months in prison; Amber Jean Davis with 96 months; Zachary Thomas Doman with 70 months; John Wesley Yates also with 70 months; Jeremy Jason Crock with 87 months; and Michael Lee Engle with 57 months—all followed by three years of supervised release.
Two individuals remain fugitives: Matthew David Viands from Summit Point and Charles Delroy Singletary from Baltimore.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lara Omps-Botteicher and Kyle Kane are leading the prosecution. Several agencies participated in the investigation including the FBI's Pittsburgh and Baltimore Field Divisions, DEA, Homeland Security Investigations among others.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation aimed at dismantling high-level criminal organizations threatening the United States through a coordinated multi-agency approach.
U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided over the proceedings.