Amelia woman sentenced in Brown County drug case
A woman initially charged with three first-degree felony counts in connection with a drug investigation in Brown County has been sentenced to a year in prison after pleading guilty to a lesser charge.
Cassi Thomas, 37, was indicted in September by a Brown County grand jury on two counts of aggravated trafficking in drugs and one count of aggravated possession of drugs, all first-degree felonies.
At the time of her arrest, the Brown County Sheriff’s Office listed her address in Amelia; the Brown County Clerk of Courts has her current address as being in La Follette, Tenn.; and according to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, she has been incarcerated in the Ohio Reformatory for Women since Feb. 29 on an unrelated charge.
The Brown County Sheriff’s Office announced last summer that from July 25-27, 2023, Thomas was one of four individuals "arrested after a yearlong investigation into an alleged drug trafficking organization that began in the Cincinnati area and provided illegal drugs to Brown County.
"This investigation was a collaborative effort involving the Brown County Drug Task Force, Brown County Sheriff’s Office, Ohio State Highway Patrol, Mount Orab Police Department, Ripley Police Department, Sardinia Police Department and the Hamilton County Heroin Task Force.
"This investigation resulted in the alleged seizure of a large amount of fentanyl, methamphetamine and several firearms. The street price of the narcotics allegedly seized during the investigation was approximately $35,000 worth of fentanyl and methamphetamine."
According to court records, Thomas pleaded guilty to an amended count of aggravated possession of drugs, lowered from a first-degree felony to a third-degree felony, on April 22. The two trafficking counts were dismissed.
Brown County Common Pleas Court Judge Scott Gusweiler sentenced Thomas to 12 months in prison. She had 33 days of jail time credit.
As noted, Thomas is currently serving a six-month prison term from a theft conviction out of Clermont County.
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