Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – January 28, 2020 – Nine persons have been indicted by a federal grand jury and charged with conspiracies to distribute heroin, fentanyl and cocaine in the Clarksville, Tennessee area, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee. The indictments, the last of which were unsealed today, are the result of a joint investigation by local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, which began in 2018 after a series of overdoses, including overdose deaths in the area.

The indictments were returned on December 19, 2019, after the investigation resulted in a number of controlled buys by law enforcement and the subsequent seizure of additional quantities of heroin, fentanyl, cocaine and marijuana; several firearms; and drug paraphernalia used in the packaging and distribution of illegal drugs.

According to the indictments and other documents filed with the court, the conspiracy at times involved the distribution of more than one kilogram of heroin, causing bodily injury to another, by one or more of the defendants and more than 40 grams of fentanyl and more than 100 grams of heroin and fentanyl, by others, in the Clarksville area, including Springfield, Tennessee and Oak Grove, Kentucky. Court documents also indicate that one or more of the defendants may have been responsible for the distribution of more than 50 kilograms of heroin.

If convicted, the defendants face a minimum of five years and some face up to life in prison.

Those charged are:

Crystal Fruin, 32; Conley Johnson, 31; Colin McClain, 36; Delvin Samuels, 31; Randolph Scott, 36; Joshua Shandle, 30; Christopher Strickland, 48, all of Clarksville; and Tranisha Mitchell, 38, and Dewayne Strickland, 50, both of Detroit, Michigan.

All defendants are in custody with the exception of Colin McClain and Conley Johnson. They are fugitives and remain at large. Anyone with information on their whereabouts should call the Clarksville Police Department at 931-648-0656 or the ATF at 615-565-1400.

This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation; the Clarksville Police Department; the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office; the 19th Judicial District Drug Task Force; the Oak Grove, Kentucky Police Department; and the Christian County Kentucky Sheriff’s Department.

An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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