Fourth Defendant Pleads Guilty in Ohio Freight Drug Case
A fourth defendant pleaded guilty Nov. 13 in federal court in Dayton, Ohio, closing out prosecutions tied to a freight shipment that concealed large quantities of narcotics, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Ohio. Jason Heath, 40, of Dayton, admitted to conspiring to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine, an offense carrying at least 10 years and up to life in prison.
Court documents say DEA agents executed a search warrant on a freight package delivered to a Dayton distribution center and seized 119 kilograms of cocaine and fentanyl, 170 pounds of methamphetamine and 80 pounds of marijuana. Two co-defendants, Roderic Searcy and Mark Lane, picked up the shipment in a van the next day; two others, Craig Worthen and Heath, followed in a separate car. When the group discovered the narcotics had already been removed, all four tried to flee and were arrested by federal agents.
Worthen was sentenced in September to 11 years. The other three defendants, including Heath, await sentencing.
What's next
- Sentencing dates for Heath, Searcy and Lane have not been announced.
All sources
- 4 defendants convicted in case involving freight shipment of hundreds of pounds of cocaine, fentanyl, methamphetamine & marijuana — U.S. Department of Justice (U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Ohio), 2026-11-13
