An alleged high level methamphetamine dealer is in the Brown County Jail.

Zachary Smith is accused of moving hundreds of pounds of meth worth millions of dollars into the hands of dealers in Ohio and Kentucky, in an area that spreads from Ironton to Dayton and south of the Ohio River.

“He was part of a major supply chain right here in Brown County. We have taken out a player who was responsible for up to two kilos a week over four months. We believe he was dealing hundreds of pounds of meth with a street value of millions of dollars,” said Brown County Drug and Major Crimes Task Force Commander Justin Conley.

Conley said that the street value of a pound of meth is approximately fifty thousand dollars and makes up about five thousand doses.

Smith is charged with Aggravated Trafficking in Drugs, Aggravated Possession of Drugs and Engaging in a Pattern of Corrupt Activity. All of those charges are first degree felonies. He is also charged with three counts of Aggravated Trafficking in Drugs and one count of Aggravated Possession of Drugs, all second degree felonies. Information on his indictment reveals that Smith had approximately $70,000 and a motorcycle seized upon his arrest.

He is in custody under a bond of $250,000.

“He was caught moving enough meth that we were able to label him as a major drug offender, which adds mandatory prison time to a potential sentence if there is a conviction,” said Brown County Prosecuting Attorney Zac Corbin.

Corbin said that the major drug offender designation means that Smith will be sentenced to the maximum of 11 years for each first degree felony he is convicted of or pleads guilty to.

The investigation into Smith and his activities ran from September through January of this year.

Conley told The News Democrat about how the case developed.

“The information we were given initially was that he was moving up to five pounds at a time. His name had come up multiple times as a up and comer in the methamphetamine game here in Brown County.”

When asked to describe Smith’s alleged area of influence, Conley said “He was dealing drugs from Dayton to Ironton and Northern Kentucky and then into Clermont, Clinton and Warren counties. He wasn’t just dealing here, but here was where his home base was.”

Conley said that Smith wasn’t the type of dealer that you would find standing on a street corner.

“He was dealing to dozens of other dealers. You couldn’t go to him for a twenty dollar piece of rock. He was the supplier to other dealers,” he said.

When asked how making an arrest of this magnitude made him and his task force members feel, Conley said “It brings a great deal of satisfaction to us, knowing that we took somebody off the street that was pushing that amount of methamphetamine. Time and time again, you see someone whose life or the life of their loved one was ruined from being addicted to methamphetamine.”

Conley also said he was grateful to the other law enforcement agencies that aided in the investigation.

“We had assistance from the Brown County Sheriff’s Office, the Warren County Drug Task Force, Ohio State Highway Patrol and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation,” Conley said. “We appreciate their valuable assistance.”