Boone Co. Cocaine Dealer Gets 18 Years

Richard Crawford, Jr. already had three prior drug trafficking convictions.

(Covington, Ky.) - He dealt cocaine in Boone County. Now, a Cincinnati man is going to federal prison for 18 years.

Richard Crawford, Jr. was sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Covington after being convicted of Distribution and Possession of Cocaine during a three-day jury trial.

U.S. attorneys say he dealt cocaine to an informant in Florence in 2017. When law enforcement served a search warrant at his apartment two days later, they found more than 400 grams of cocaine and crack cocaine, evidence of drug paraphernalia, and cash used by the confidential informant to purchase cocaine.

The 54-year-old Crawford must serve at least 85 percent of his 18 years sentence. Upon his release, he will be on probation for six years.

Crawford has an extensive criminal history with three prior trafficking convictions, allowing him to qualify as a “career offender” under sentencing guidelines allowing a longer sentence, prosecutors said.

 Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), jointly made the announcement. 

The investigation was conducted by the DEA and the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force.  The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Wade T. Napier, Jennifer K. Weinhold, and Tony Bracke.