Residents nabbed in UNITE drug sweep

A round-up by Operation UNITE and local officials Monday morning yielded the arrest of five individuals on various drug charges stemming from UNITE investigations.
“There is an on-going investigation down in Whitley County. We have had several units that have been working the area,” said Douglas Dalrymple, a UNITE supervisor and acting task force manager Monday.
The investigation resulted in 28 indictments, and 17 people had already been picked up or turned themselves in prior to the round up Monday morning.
Officers with the Williamsburg Police Department, Whitley County Sheriff’s Department, and Kentucky State Police assisted with the round-up arrest.
Seven UNITE officers involved in the investigation met local officers at the Williamsburg Tourism and Convention Center about 8 a.m. Monday before leaving out in three to four man teams in an effort to locate wanted suspects.
Arrested suspects were then brought back to the convention center where UNITE officers processed them. The suspects then had the option of meeting with local ministers for counseling before being transported to the Whitley County Detention Center.
Dalrymple said the investigations involved various cases, and spanned a wide range of time.
“It is hard to put a starting point and stopping point on it because it is constant. Cases are being made on a weekly and monthly basis,” Dalrymple said.
“It is just on-going. We have people that we are investigating. There will be more arrests in the future. Whether these arrests today generate more arrests, I don’t know.
“There are other people in the community that we are investigating for selling drugs based on the tips that come in.”
According to court documents, those arrested Monday include:
• Clayton Lee Walters Jr., 36, of Rockholds – first-offense forgery of a prescription.
• Jason Wayne Walters, 26, of Rockholds – first-offense forgery of a prescription.
• Ron Canada, 47, of Corbin – first, second and third-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, and trafficking in marijuana less than eight ounces.
• Anita L. McCune, 39, of Keavy – two counts of first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, and one count of third-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.
• Ella Lois Cooper, 66, of Corbin – third-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.
Dalrymple said it is difficult to organize operations like the one Monday for various reasons.
In addition to investigating various illegal activity, officers must also spend quite a bit of time in court once a criminal case is filed.
“The same goes for all the other agencies. We really appreciate them donating their manpower and time for this type of operation,” Dalrymple said. “There would be no way we could get it off the ground if they weren’t here to help us.”
Dalrymple said it’s tough to say whether round ups like the one Monday put a dent in the drug problem.
“It brings about an awareness,” he noted. “Part of taking care of any problem number one is awareness. You have to make people aware of the problem. I think it does that.”