Drug wholesalers avoid prison, move on to new business

LANCASTER – Blowing the whistle on her husband's criminal enterprise didn't pay off for 34-year-old Sarah Surratt.

She was hauled off to jail just as her husband, David G. Surratt Jr., and five of his other employees were, but somehow she fared worse than the rest. Despite her decision to turn in her husband, alerting the police to a criminal organization that may have otherwise gone unnoticed, Sarah Surratt received the harshest punishment, more than doubling the prison and probation sanction her husband was subjected to and nearly doubling the fine he was ordered to pay.

All of her time in prison was suspended, but the sentencing of David Surratt, 38, and his employees, specifically his right-hand man, does raise questions. How does a criminal enterprise's hierarchy get turned on its head when a case enters a courtroom? Why is no one serving prison time?

If it wasn't for Sarah Surratt, her husband's business, Oncore Wholesale, may still be operating out of a pole barn behind the couple's Violet Township home, 7700 Busey Road, where it raked in at least $2 million from 2011 to 2013.

Sarah Surratt called the Fairfield County Sheriff's Office on July 9, 2013, after the couple got into an argument and she alleged her husband grabbed her by the arm. While deputies were there, she mentioned her husband may be selling illegal drugs out of their barn, prompting a consensual search and a full-blown raid two days later.

That domestic dispute led to a drug raid that local law enforcement agencies first speculated was the largest, most significant raid of its kind in Fairfield County, and possibly in Ohio.

On July 11, 2013, the Major Crimes Unit seized a sea of wooden pallets from the warehouse, stacked high with "stash cans" bearing trademarked labels that were constructed to be taken apart to reveal a hidden compartment to conceal items or contraband.

The stash cans looked identical to popular household items and food packaging. They not only looked realistic; the better ones were clever. The bleach bottle contained real bleach when unscrewed and the soda bottle had real soda in it.

Investigators spread gallon-sized bags of raw kratom, commonly referred to as an "herbal speedball," across tables to get a better look at the business' inventory. Some of the kratom was already packaged for sale, and some was in raw form, ready to be divvied up into pill forms or smaller packages.

David Surratt and his employees were accused of selling kratom, nitrous oxide (aka laughing gas), and Hawaiian baby woodrose seeds to head shops across the nation, according to investigators and the Ohio Attorney General's Office, which also took notice of the local case.

"It was extensive — the network of individuals and of the business itself," said Major Crimes Unit Commander Eric Brown.

The eight co-defendants investigators identified as part of the criminal enterprise, listed by hierarchy in the business, were: David Surratt, of Canal Winchester; Adam D. Haase, 38, of Columbus; Sarah M. Surratt, of Canal Winchester; Shawn R. Lewis, 29, of Columbus; Jason E. Kibler, 38, of Reynoldsburg; Kevin J. Wilt, 28, of Canal Winchester; Amanda E. Parsons, 26, of Lancaster; and David A. Highben, 41, of Columbus. Parsons' case is the eighth and final case pending in Fairfield County Common Pleas court as she still has an active warrant for her arrest.

Oncore Wholesale was selling drugs within a gray area — one that became more legally defined once seven of the eight co-defendants pleaded guilty to various charges in 2014, including drug trafficking, possession or sale of unapproved drugs, trafficking in harmful intoxicants and trademark counterfeiting.

Despite the raid's notoriety touted by officials initially, the prosecution led to zero prison time for all of the seven co-defendants who have faced a courtroom. All but two defendants were sentenced to varying lengths of probation, avoiding serving a single day in a penal institution.

The plea deals negotiated by defense attorneys and the Fairfield County Prosecutor's Office were sporadic.

Some Oncore Wholesale employees pleaded guilty to trademark counterfeiting involving the stash cans, but David Surratt did not. Some employees admitted to selling nitrous oxide, kratom and Hawaiian baby woodrose seeds, while David Surratt only admitted to selling one: kratom.

Kratom is a little-known drug with major implications, according to investigators.

Related to the coffee plant, the evergreen tree indigenous to Southeast Asia has been used as an herbal pain reliever in other countries for decades. However, in many countries with long-term kratom use, it was made illegal, including Thailand, because of its opiate-like traits and potential for abuse.

In the U.S., kratom is often promoted online as a legal high, one that's natural, containing no synthetic elements. While kratom is not illegal in the U.S., it is not approved by the Federal Drug Administration, meaning it is illegal to sell for consumption.

"It's popping up across the United States," Brown said. "Other states are battling the same issues with kratom."

The effects of kratom depend on the amount a user consumes, which can happen by taking a pill containing its powder, mixing it into a tea or simply by chewing its leaves. A low dose acts as a stimulant and a high dose acts as a sedative with euphoric-like effects, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

On most websites selling kratom, there are disclaimers saying the product should not be consumed, but investigators say it's similar to bath salts in that consuming it is actually the seller and buyer's only intention.

"These individuals were blatantly promoting and selling the products for consumption," said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine in a news release following the 2013 raid. "Although these are not your typical street drugs, we do have concerns that abuse of these substances could become more common."

A similar argument was made for the Hawaiian baby woodrose seeds, which contain LSA (lysergic acid amide) when grown and harvested. The seeds produce an ornamental plant, grown in Hawaii, California and Florida, which creates a similar effect to LSD when consumed.

Lysergic acid amide is considered a schedule III controlled substance in Ohio, which is the same classification level as anabolic steroids, depressants and stimulants. Hawaiian baby woodrose seeds are readily available online and inexpensive. On one website, 100 seeds can be purchased for $15. Of course, there is a warning saying they should not be consumed and are for ornamental growing purposes only.

There was significantly more kratom found at Oncore Warehouse, Brown said, than Hawaiian baby woodrose seeds. All of the drugs and contraband were seized during the investigation and remain in the custody of law enforcement officials.

The Ohio State Board of Pharmacy labeled kratom as an emerging drug of concern. The tricky part is making it illegal to buy and sell as a controlled substance, like marijuana or hydrocodone.

Technically, it wouldn't be kratom that would be considered a controlled substance; it would be kratom's primary active alkaloid, or organic compound, called mitragynine.

Currently, if anyone is caught selling kratom or mitragynine for the purpose of consumption, he or she can be charged with the sale of an unapproved drug.

Because kratom is not monitored by any national drug abuse survey, information on its user population in the U.S. is limited, according to the DEA. Major Crimes Unit detectives said kratom is sold locally and across the U.S. at head shops. It's also widely available on the Internet, being sold on one website for $40 per ounce.

According to the DEA, there is no legitimate medicinal use for kratom and it is described as a dangerous drug that can lead to addiction and withdrawal symptoms.

The co-defendants in what Brown described as an herbal drug wholesaler on a "grand scale" faced multiple felonies that included a first-degree felony for David Surratt for engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity. His employees were indicted on the lesser count of conspiracy to commit engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity.

If Oncore Wholesale employees admitted to trafficking Hawaiian baby woodrose seeds and possessing trademarked stash cans online before David Surratt's day in court, how did he manage to plead guilty to only one of the 17 charges levied against him?

The same went for Haase, David Surratt's top salesperson and second-in-command, according to investigators. All but one of Haase's 14 charges were dismissed after pleading to one. Haase's plea hearing was scheduled the same day as David Surratt's on Nov. 13. The majority of the other employees had already taken more extreme plea deals, admitting to more charges and leading to harsher punishments.

Three of David Surratt's lower-level employees, including his wife, Shawn Lewis and Jason Kibler, were all sentenced to more years in prison and a larger fine than David Surratt and Haase's sentences combined.

"The disparity in sentencing is something that law enforcement, in certain instances, has no control over, even though we can give our recommendation," Brown said in response to the irregular sentences co-defendants received throughout the 11/ 2 -year process.

Fairfield County Prosecutor Gregg Marx said he was "satisfied with the results of these prosecutions." Marx, via email, said the case involved many complex factors and that the "defendants suffered substantial post-conviction sanctions."

The Eagle-Gazette reached out to Sarah Surratt and her attorneys, but they did not respond to requests for comment.

The prosecutor's office and defense attorneys came to negotiated plea deals in each of the seven cases that have played out in the Fairfield County court system, with a presiding judge making the final determination.

"These sentences were fully in accordance with law and supported by the facts and circumstances surrounding these cases," Marx said. "Sentencing is a judicial function, and as a matter of policy, we decline to otherwise characterize a judge's sentence once it is imposed. As prosecutors, we are sworn to seek justice in every case and I feel confident that a just result was achieved in these cases on behalf of the citizens of Fairfield County."

While David Surratt's prison/probation sanction was lacking compared to others in his organization, he did face a punishment the others did not receive. Former Fairfield County Judge Chris Martin ordered that he forfeit about $50,000 worth of seized property and cash related to the case.

David Surratt also was forced to give up "kratom, nitrous oxide, woodrose seeds and related inventory," according to court documents. While stash cans weren't explicitly mentioned at his court hearing, Major Crimes Unit Detective Scott Jones said investigators will not return the thousands of dollars in stash cans they seized from the warehouse.

Jones said that's a fight David Surratt's attorneys just started, but he said because other co-defendants pleaded to trademark counterfeiting, the stash cans are contraband and should not be returned.

Brown pointed out that many work hours, not just from local agencies, were poured into the investigation and prosecution of the wholesaler, including the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the Ohio State Board of Pharmacy. Both BCI and the pharmacy board media officials declined to comment on the sentencing of individuals in the case.

Now that the case is finished with the exception of Parsons, Brown said despite the outcome, investigators were correct in the amount and severity of the original charges filed.

"I think the charges that we filed were valid, and I think we had the evidence we needed to file those charges," he said.

While the Oncore Wholesale case is nearing an end in court, the co-defendants are moving on, including the Surratts, who started divorce proceedings days after the warehouse was raided.

The business also moved on, but to a new warehouse in Groveport. It still operates under the Oncore Wholesale name, selling scales, smoking devices and tobacco products, according to its Facebook page. To access the business' full website and purchase items, visitors must create an online account.

When the Eagle-Gazette called Oncore Wholesale, requesting to speak to the owner or a manager about current operations and merchandise, the unidentified person answering the phone said, "I'm just not going to talk about it."

While Oncore Wholesale representatives might not want to talk about current operations, investigators say they will be keeping an eye on them.

As for Sarah Surratt, her seven-year prison sentence was suspended in lieu of five years of a probation. She was ordered to fulfill a six-month driver's license suspension, pay a $4,000 fine and complete 250 hours of community service — still a much harsher penalty than all the others she exposed to authorities. For the 34-year-old, it was a costly whistle to blow.

sroush@lancastereaglegazette.com

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Twitter: @SpencerRoushLEG