Owen County Man Sentenced for Armed Drug Trafficking

FRANKFORT, Ky. - An Owenton, Ky., man, Tyler Leathers, 35, was sentenced to 180 months in prison on Monday, by U.S. District Judge Greg Van Tatenhove, following convictions for possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, 40 grams or more of fentanyl, cocaine, and 10 grams or more of fluorofentanyl, as well as possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.

According to his plea agreement, on September 29, 2023, law enforcement served an unrelated state arrest warrant on Leathers and searched the property. Inside, they found cocaine, a ledger, multiple clear baggies, scales, and several thousand dollars. In the garage, law enforcement found methamphetamine, fentanyl, fluorofentanyl, and additional drug trafficking paraphernalia. Law enforcement also found 10 firearms, throughout the residence. Leathers admitted that he possessed the drugs with the intent to distribute them and that he possessed the firearms in furtherance of his drug distribution.

Under federal law, Leathers must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years.

Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Michael Stansbury, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Louisville Field Division; and Sheriff Brent Caldwell, Owen County Sheriff's Office, jointly announced the sentencing.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI and the Owen County Sheriff's Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittany Baker is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

- END -