CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Georgia man who was caught with methamphetamine and a stolen pistol in a Summersville hotel was sentenced today to two years and eight months in federal prison, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Daniel Branden O’Dell, 34, previously pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
On October 30, 2015, a Nicholas County Deputy Sheriff responded to a disabled vehicle call on U.S. Route 19. The vehicle, a 2015 BMW, had been reported stolen from Atlanta and was unoccupied when the officer arrived. After a brief investigation, officers learned that O’Dell had wrecked the vehicle and gotten a ride to a hotel in Summersville. When police arrested O’Dell at his hotel room, they found methamphetamine and a loaded .45 caliber pistol that had been stolen in Cobb County, Georgia. O’Dell admitted to transporting the methamphetamine from Georgia to sell in Pennsylvania. He also admitted to being a felon and told police he had purchased the stolen firearm in Georgia. O’Dell has a lengthy criminal history that includes numerous theft and drug-related felony convictions.
This case was investigated by the Nicholas County Sheriff’s Department and the Summersville Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks is in charge of the prosecution. United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a nationwide commitment to reduce gun crime in the United States by working with existing local programs targeting gun violence. This case was also prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of illegal drugs, including methamphetamine. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of illegal drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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