Thirty-five suspected methamphetamine dealers have been charged after a three-month-long investigation by undercover police and the Johnson County Prosecutor’s Office.
The suspects, most of whom face multiple felony drug dealing charges, have been arrested in the past two weeks. Court documents outlining the details of the charges against them were sealed for the safety of undercover detectives who made the arrests.
In all, at least 19 suspects have been arrested. Another 16 suspects have not yet been found, or were arrested in another central Indiana county but face felony drug charges in Johnson County.
More than 10 of the suspects live in Edinburgh, and at least six are from Greenwood. At least four suspects are from Franklin and another four live in Columbus.
This is the third major drug arrest sweep in 12 months, and the overriding trend narcotics detectives discovered in recent months was the use of methamphetamine, as compared to previous investigations that netted heroin dealers, Prosecutor Brad Cooper said.
The suspected meth dealers were brazen, narcotics officers discovered, conducting deals this summer in a store parking lot off of U.S. 31 in Franklin, Cooper said. One person now facing charges conducted two separate drug deals from his vehicle while parked in front of a post office in the middle of the day, Cooper said.
The previous investigations got the message out to heroin dealers that they won’t be tolerated in Johnson County. Now, officers and prosecutors are making that clear to meth dealers, he said.
“We’re out there. We’re looking for them. We are going to make every effort to get the drug and drug dealers out of our county and off of our streets,” Cooper said. His office will now work to aggressively prosecute the cases.
Most of the suspected drug dealers arrested in recent weeks are considered small- to mid-level dealers, Cooper said. During the investigation, officers make an in-the-moment decision whether to continue undercover operations and build a case, or arrest a suspect on the spot, based on such factors as the amount of drugs or whether children are present, Cooper said.
Most of the methamphetamine that officers got in the undercover drug deals was made in Mexico, the prosecutor’s office said. A functioning meth lab hasn’t been found in Johnson County in more than two years.
Several local police departments and their undercover narcotics officers were involved in building cases and charges against the suspects, Cooper said.
“They are doing a huge service to this community by not only getting the drugs off the street, but getting the drug dealers off the street,” Cooper said.
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The following people have been arrested and charged following a three-month long undercover drug investigation in Johnson County:
Davia Stephens, 39, Columbus. Charges: Two charges of dealing a schedule 4 controlled substance, aiding in dealing methamphetamine. Arrested.
Jeremy Lee Crutcher, 40, Franklin. Charges: Two charges of dealing methamphetamine. Arrested.
Joey J. Chandler, 30, Edinburgh. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine. Arrested.
Hilarie D. Whitmore, 38, Greenwood. Charges: Four charges of dealing methamphetamine. Arrested.
Ginger Mae Collins, 42, Edinburgh. Charges: Aiding in dealing methamphetamine, dealing a schedule 4 controlled substance. Arrested.
Shawn B. Park, 28, Edinburgh. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine. Arrested
Mahmoud Siefelnasr, 43, Greenwood. Charges: Two charges of dealing a schedule 4 controlled substance. Arrested.
Craig B. Pennington, 39, Bargersville. Charges: Dealing methamphetamine, operating a motor vehicle after being suspended for life. Arrested.
Mackenzie J. Blythe, 34, Greenwood. Charges: Four charges of dealing a scheduled 2 or 3 controlled substance. Arrested.
Shawn A. Vaughan, 31, Franklin. Charges: Dealing a scheduled 2 controlled substance, aiding in dealing a scheduled 2 controlled substance. Arrested.
James M. Stewart, 26, Franklin. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine. Arrested.
Lyric M. Campton, 20, Edinburgh, Charges: Dealing methamphetamine and dealing paraphernalia. Arrested.
Yvonne C. Phillips, 43, Franklin. Charges: Three charges of dealing methamphetamine, dealing marijuana and maintaining a common nuisance. Arrested.
Beverly K. Anderson, 29, Taylorsville. Charges: Dealing a schedule 3 controlled substance and dealing methamphetamine. Arrested.
Murriel D. Ramey, 33, Columbus. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine. Arrested
Cari Dawn Cuskaden, 42, Avon. Charges: Dealing methamphetamine, possession of a restricted drug injection device and theft/receiving stolen property. Arrested
Tianna Helm, 25, Greenwood. Charges: Three charges of aiding in dealing methamphetamine. Arrested
Anthony Edwards, 22, Nineveh. Charge: Aiding in dealing a schedule 4 controlled substance. Arrested
Drew Pile, 39, Edinburgh. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine. Arrested
The following suspects have also been charged, but either have not been arrested or were booked into a jail elsewhere:
Anthony Burris, 27, Edinburgh. Charges: Three charges of dealing methamphetamine.
Andru Flannery, 40, Greenwood. Charge: Dealing in a schedule 4 controlled substance.
Ryan Baumgart, 32, Greenwood. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
Bradley Kemmerer, 27, Indianapolis. Charges: Two charges of dealing methamphetamine.
Linda Shepherd, 43, Edinburgh. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
Misty Napier, 32, Edinburgh. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
Crisley Bryant, 27, Indianapolis. Charge: Aiding in dealing methamphetamine.
John Mullis, 31, Edinburgh. Charges: Dealing a narcotic drug, dealing methamphetamine and dealing a scheduled 4 controlled substance.
Michael Adair Jr., 41, Edinburgh. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
Samantha Banks, 41, Columbus. Charges: Two charges of dealing methamphetamine.
David Denson, 45, Nineveh. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
Kenneth Swinehart, 31, Indianapolis. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
Jodi Gentry, 32, Columbus. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
Shaun Schafer, 36, Greenfield. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
Daniel Austin, 30, Edinburgh. Charges: Two charges of dealing methamphetamine.
Tiffany Thomas, 32, Franklin. Charge: Dealing methamphetamine.
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