West Virginia man who is one of 12 in drug trafficking ring spanning from Vegas to Mountain State, admits to selling cocaine

WHEELING, W.Va. — A Wheeling man is facing decades in federal prison after admitting to the distribution of cocaine base.

According the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of West Virginia, court records show Daryl Smith, 50, was selling cocaine base in Ohio County.

Smith is one of 12 defendants involved in a drug trafficking operation that spanned from Las Vega, Nevada to the Ohio Valley.

A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors, Smith could be sentenced up to 20 years.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Carly Nogay and United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government.

The Ohio Valley Drug Task Force, Marshall County Drug Task Force, and the Hancock-Brooke-Weirton Drug Task Force, all HIDTA-funded initiatives; Drug Enforcement Administration; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms; West Virginia State Police; Wheeling Police Department; Ohio County Sheriff’s Office; and the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office investigated.

U.S. Magistrate Judge James P. Mazzone presided.

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