LARGE-SCALE INVESTIGATION SHUTS OFF SOUTHERN OKLAHOMA DRUG PIPELINE

A major drug trafficking operation has been dismantled as part of a large-scale investigation by state and local authorities in southern Oklahoma. Mark Woodward, Spokesman for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN) says his agency, along with the Murray County Sheriff’s Department began an investigation in January of 2022 targeting individuals moving drugs onto the streets of several communities in southern Oklahoma.

“During the investigation, OBN Agents were able to make multiple undercover purchases of drugs, including meth, cocaine and fentanyl. As a result, we began to identify several people involved in this trafficking operation," said Woodward.

Woodward said OBN Agents and officers from several departments executed 7 Search Warrants and 7 Arrest Warrants in Ardmore, early Thursday, April 13, for those involved in this criminal trafficking organization, including the main target, Samuel Myles, 56. All of the defendants were arrested and transported to the Carter County Jail where they face a variety of charges including drug trafficking.

During the course of the investigation, OBN Agents seized 10 pounds of methamphetamine, 1,000 fentanyl pills and a large quantity of crack cocaine.

Assisting OBN were members from the Murray County Sheriff’s Department, Ardmore Police Department, Carter County Sheriff’s Department, Chickasaw Nation Light Horse Police Department, Marshall County Sheriff’s Department, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, the US Drug Enforcement Administration, and the US Marshal’s Service.

“I am extremely grateful to our local and federal partners for their assistance today and throughout this lengthy and complex investigation. Getting these criminals and their drugs off the streets saves countless lives, and none of this would be possible without the cooperation and resources of our local sheriffs and police chiefs," said OBN Director Donnie Anderson.

Those arrested along with Myles, were William Watson, 67, Dwaylon Houston, 40, Victoria Pickens, 38, James Douglas, 57, Tracy French, 54, and Christopher Loftis, 45.