Multiple Pennsylvania residents charged with interstate drug trafficking

PITTSBURGH, Pa. (WTAJ) — Multiple residents from Lawrence County have been charged with trafficking fentanyl, heroin, cocaine and oxycodone, according to United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan.

In total, nineteen individuals from Pennsylvania and Michigan have been charged. Each was indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh for their participation in a large-scale drug trafficking organization. The one-count Indictment charges the defendants with conspiring to possess and distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, five kilograms or more of cocaine, 100 grams or more of heroin, and a quantity of oxycodone from August 2023 to July 2024.

The defendants are as follows:

• Christian Frierson, 33, Detroit, MI
• Devail Adams, 54, Oak Park, MI
• Christopher Barton, 24, New Castle, PA
• Patrick Brown, 32, Detroit, MI
• Roy Brown, 55, Westland, MI
• Frank Christian, 51, Youngstown, OH
• Tyrone Davis, 35, Detroit, MI
• Edward Dietrich, 59, New Castle, PA
• Alexis Donnell, 29, New Castle, PA
• Dedric Higginbotham, 55, Detroit, MI
• Kiara Jones, 24, New Castle, PA
• Quinten Jones, 38, Detroit, MI
• Kenneth King, 37, New Castle, PA
• Jermaine Lett, 52, Detroit, MI
• Marcus Mason, 32, New Castle, PA
• Daniel Rasnick, 27, New Castle, PA
• Kendra Sager, 32, New Castle, PA
• Jauan Searcy, 42, New Castle, PA
• George Wyatt, 61, New Castle, PA

According to the indictment, the defendants were part of a drug trafficking organization (DTO) based in Detroit and New Castle and would then distribute drugs to other dealers throughout and beyond Western Pennsylvania.

In March 2024, Christian Frierson was arrested following a traffic stop on Interstate 80 in the vicinity of Omaha, Nebraska. Frierson, who was driving eastbound from California, was found in possession of a safe containing over 1,000 grams of fentanyl and nearly 250 grams of heroin, according to a release.

According to the search warrant affidavit, agents utilized confidential sources and informants, extensive surveillance and analysis of phone records, controlled purchases of drugs, search warrants, and eventually court-authorized wiretaps from May 2024 to the present (among other investigative tools) to gather evidence in an effort to ascertain the scope of the illegal drug activities. Intercepted wiretap calls and text messages revealed that several members of the DTO in Detroit recruited individuals to work at “trap houses” in New Castle.

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The law provides for a sentence of not less than 10 years and up to life in prison, a fine of up to $10 million, or both.

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