BELMONT COUNTY, Ohio – Belmont County Sheriff James Zusack announced the arrest of a West Virginia man who allegedly stashed a major stash of illegal drugs in a Belmont County storage unit.
On July 26, detectives with the Criminal Interdiction Unit executed a
search warrant at a storage unit in Belmont County, Ohio. Detectives seized over
450 grams of cocaine, bulk amounts of suspected fentanyl, and ecstasy during the
execution of the search warrant. Three firearms and $3,000 in suspected drug
proceeds were also confiscated as part of this investigation.
Although the suspect was not on scene during the search warrant, he was
located at another business in Belmont County and was arrested. Tyrell Silas
Askerneese, 46, of Clarksburg, West Virginia was arrested in St. Clairsville, Ohio for
several charges including trafficking in cocaine, possession of cocaine, and three counts
of having weapons under disability.
Askerneese is considered a “Major Drug Offender” under Ohio law and is prohibited from possessing firearms.
Authorities say this arrest was due to combined efforts of the Sheriff’s Criminal Interdiction
Unit and the Ohio Valley Drug Task Force with assistance from the road patrol units
and the St. Clairsville Police Department.
