A Hillsboro man was sentenced in Highland County Common Pleas Court to four years in prison on multiple drug trafficking charges.
Ryan Wilson, 29, was sentenced to two years on one count of aggravated trafficking in methamphetamine in the vicinity of a school zone, a second-degree felony, which was ordered to be consecutive to another sentence of two years for the second count of aggravated trafficking on meth, also a second-degree felony, with Wilson also given a forfeiture specification. He was also given 14 days of jail-time credit.
Court records state that Wilson was ordered to pay restitution of $1,350 to the Highland County Task Force alongside his co-defendant through the Highland County Victim Witness Office.
According to court documents for the first count, on or around Aug. 12, 2021, investigators met with an informant who said they could purchase meth from Wilson. The informant was given an audio/video recorder and $350. The informant was dropped off at Flagway, and investigators watched them walk to the parking lot. The informant met with a male and a female in a black Ford Focus.
The informant handed the money over to the female driver, who then gave the money to Wilson. Wilson said they would initiate contact with the informant after they had the product. Around 30 minutes later, the informant was once again dropped off at Flagway where they entered Wilson’s vehicle. The informant picked up a plastic bag of substance from the female, who was now a passenger with Wilson the driver.
The group drove around and dropped the informant off. The informant gave the investigators the substance that tested for 13.97 grams of meth that was sold within 1,000 feet of St. Mary’s Catholic School.
According to court documents for the second count, on or around Sept. 2, 2021, investigators met with an informant who said they could purchase meth from Wilson. A substance was eventually purchased from Wilson and tested positive as meth.
According to court documents for the third count, Wilson was ordered to forfeit a 2013 black Ford Focus.
In other sentencings, Nancy Penix, 62, Hillsboro, was sentenced to six total years of community control for two separate cases.
For the first case, Penix was sentenced to three years of community control on one count of the illegal purchase of a catalytic converter, a first-degree misdemeanor, and one count of trafficking in marijuana, a fifth-degree felony.
Court records state that Penix was ordered to pay restitution of $130 alongside his co-defendant to the Ohio Organized Crime Investigation Commission through the Highland County Victim Witness Office.
Court records also stated that if Penix violates any of the community control sanctions, she would be given a sentence of between six and 12 months and ordered to pay a fine of $3,000.
According to court documents for both counts, on or around Oct. 8, 2021, two investigators were working with an informant who said they could trade three catalytic converters for marijuana. One detective, as well as other detectives from the Highland County Sheriff’s Office met with the informant and gave them three catalytic converters for use in a transaction.
The informant was told to tell someone that the converters were stolen to give that person the chance to back out of the exchange. The informant met with the seller and the marijuana trader said they could cut off the end showing the cut marks on the converters “so that law enforcement could not match the converters with the vehicle” they were stolen from, according to court records.
The trader made the cuts and gave the informant the scrap to take away. Penix then gave the informant $230, with the trader also giving the informant a glass jar of green substance that later tested positive as 1.22 grams of marijuana.
For the second case, Penix was sentenced to another three years of community control on one count of receiving stolen property, a fourth-degree felony.
Court records state that Penix was ordered to pay restitution of $250 alongside her co-defendant through the Highland County Victim Witness Office.
Court records also stated that if Penix violates any of the community control sanctions, she would be given a sentence of between six and 18 months and ordered to pay a fine of $5,000.
According to court documents, in September 2021, an investigation was started that involved illegal activity at a scrap yard on S.R. 753. The junkyard license given to the yard was in the name of Penix.
During that investigation, several covert operations were done where vehicle parts were shown by a confidential informant to a co-operator of the scrap yard as stolen. In exchange for the vehicle parts that were shown to be stolen, the co-operator gave a the informant cash and/or an illegal controlled substance.
On April 8, 2022, law enforcement executed a search warrant on the property. During the execution of the warrant, law enforcement found a 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee and a 2002 Ford Explorer that were both reported as stolen. While at the scene, a detective recorded an interview with an employee of the scrap yard.
The employee indicated that they were working on the stolen 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee that was brought in by two females and one male, and records said the co-operator agreed to purchase the vehicle. The employee then said they were told by the co-operator to pay $350 to the three people for the vehicle, according to court records.
In other sentencings, Travis Blevins, 40, Hillsboro, was sentenced to three years of community control on one count of trafficking in heroin, a fifth-degree felony; and one count of trafficking in a fentanyl-related compound, a fourth-degree felony.
Court records state that Blevins was ordered to pay restitution of $160 to the Highland County Victim Witness Office.
Court records also stated that if Blevins violates any of the community control sanctions, he would be given a sentence of between six and 30 months and ordered to pay a fine of $7,500.
According to court documents for both counts, on or around Nov. 1, 2021, two investigators met with an informant who said they could purchase heroin from Blevins for $70. The informant was given $70 and driven to Hill Road, where the investigators watched them walk to a location.
The informant met with Blevins in the driveway and counted the money. Blevins only had $50 worth of heroin and gave that to the informant. The substance tested positive as .27 grams of fentanyl.
Reach Jacob Clary at 937-402-2570.
