Pictured, from left: Investigator J.C. Logan, Michael David Mullins Sr., Izard County Chief Deputy Charley Melton, and Kolton Lane with the DEA escort Mullins into the Izard County Detention Center (first photo). / Image via Izard County Sheriff’s Department
The death of an Izard County man earlier this year that was ruled a fentanyl overdose has resulted in the arrests of major drug dealers in and around Izard County, according to Izard County Chief Deputy Charley Melton.
Michael David Mullins Sr., aka “Slick,” of Highland, was arrested Tuesday after a federal indictment was handed down charging him and others with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl resulting in death, according to a release from the Izard County Sheriff’s Department,
Authorities started serving warrants Tuesday, Dec. 14, charging seven individuals with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.
In addition to Mullins, the sheriff’s department said those charged in the federal indictments include: Richard Kyle Cohn, 34, of Calico Rock; Andrew Mark Martin, 42, of Couch, Mo.; Ricky Joe Cluck, 64, of Hardy; Jamey D. Roof, 56, of Mountain Home; Samuel R. Noakes, 39, with a last known address in Franklin, Ark., of Myrtle, Mo; and Michael Joseph Kelly, 32, of Horseshoe Bend.
Mullins will face an additional charge of distribution resulting in death.
“This is the first time we have been able to directly link a dealer to the death of another person,” Melton said in the release.
Officers also learned that Mullins had allegedly made transactions with the deceased on the day he died, according to the release. The crime lab would rule the overdose death as a result of the fentanyl provided by Mullins.
Melton said the federal indictments are a direct result of the Opioid Abuse Program Grant the department obtained earlier this year that funded two additional investigators.
“They started putting together a case file that tied Mullins Sr. directly to the deceased, and as a result, additional information led them to others who were possessing fentanyl with intent to distribute,” said Melton.
When investigators determined that the investigation was going to lead outside their jurisdiction, the Drug Enforcement Administration was asked to assist.
“Most of these individuals are familiar to area law enforcement officers, but we have never been able to connect all the individuals until now,” Melton said.
“The wreckage caused by drugs affects everyone. Drug dealers breed crime in our neighborhoods and are a danger to our children. DEA will continue to lock arms with our state, local and federal law enforcement partners, including the United States Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Arkansas, in an effort to save lives from drug traffickers distributing fentanyl, and other illicit narcotics in our communities. Our combined efforts will continue to bring those distributing this poison to justice across the state of Arkansas and elsewhere,” said DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge Jarad Harper in the release.
Officers from Izard, Sharp, Fulton, Independence, the Special Resource Team, Arkansas Department of Correction, the 16th Judicial District Drug Task Force, and DEA participated in the arrests.
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