Fifteen people were arrested Thursday by federal, state and local law enforcement officers as part of a methamphetamine trafficking investigation that lasted more than a year, according to the U.S. attorney's office.
The investigation covered Baxter, Benton, Boone, Newton, Searcy and Washington counties in Arkansas as well as parts of Missouri and Oklahoma.
Eleven of the defendants were arrested on federal charges and four were arrested on state charges, the release said. Three others already were in custody on federal charges.
Law enforcement also executed seven federal and four state search warrants in Arkansas and one federal search warrant in Missouri, according to the release.
A federal grand jury on Oct. 5 returned three separate indictments, which were unsealed Thursday, charging 19 individuals in the Harrison and Missouri areas with large-scale drug trafficking conspiracy. The indictments included 37 counts, all of which involve the distribution of methamphetamine, the release said. Several were charged with using cellphones in the distribution of methamphetamine.
Those arrested Thursday will appear in federal court in Fort Smith next week before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Ford, the release said.
State Desk on 10/28/2016