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CALHOUN MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO 200 POUND POT CASE |
| (06/22/2004) |
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A Calhoun County man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in
Charleston to conspiring to distribute more than 200 pounds of marijuana. Larry T. Copen, 23, of Sand Ridge, says he was a only a paid courier, hired to pick up the pot from a Dunbar truck depot. He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute the drug and one count of possession with the intent to distribute. The pot is valued at $800 to $1,600 a pound wholesale, according to DEA, with the estimated value of the shipment being between $163,200 and $326,400. Copen told Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. he was paid $1,000 to make the pickup, but declined to identify the person or persons who hired him for the job. Copen faces a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison, a $2 million fine and three years of supervised release. Having no prior arrests will play in the man's favor, but his lack of cooperation in the case could add prison time. He told the judge he did not get the money in advance, but was given $400 to pay the shipping costs from California. During the hearing, it was revealed that Copen rented a truck on his own to make the pick-up from Yellow Freight at Dunbar. The pot came in four large cardboard boxes. DEA Agent Robert Negro said they received a tip regarding the transaction, after which they got a search warrant and discovered the drug. Copen is married with a 2-year-old daughter and works at Phillip and Sons Masonry in Orma He will be sentenced September 2 at 1:30 p.m. and is currently out of jail on bail.
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