Detroit Man Pleads Guilty to Leading Role in Huntington-Area Drug Trafficking Conspiracy

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Joshua Willie McCarver, also known as "TJ," 28, of Detroit, Michigan, pleaded guilty today to distribution of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. McCarver admitted to a leading role in a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that distributed methamphetamine and fentanyl in the Huntington area.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 5, 2025, McCarver sold approximately 112 grams of methamphetamine to a confidential informant in exchange for $650 at a Huntington residence. As part of his guilty plea, McCarver admitted that he conducted the transaction, arranged it beforehand by phone with the confidential informant, and directed the confidential informant to the residence where the transaction took place.

McCarver further admitted that between January 2025 and August 2025, he answered phone calls and text message for himself and co-conspirators from drug buyers whom he directed to different co-conspirators to purchase methamphetamine and fentanyl depending on the customers' prior transactions and location. McCarver also admitted that he received 28 calls during the time period from a confidential informant and completed the sale of drugs to this individual on six occasions in Huntington.

On March 17, 2025, McCarver was traveling in a vehicle from Huntington to Detroit when Ohio law enforcement officers conducted a traffic stop of the vehicle. Officers searched the vehicle and found $27,951. Ohio law enforcement officers conducted a separate traffic stop on July 9, 2025, of a vehicle in which McCarver was traveling from Huntington to Detroit and seized approximately $23,453 during a subsequent search of the vehicle. As part of his guilty plea, McCarver admitted that the cash seized during both traffic stops was proceeds from the distribution of fentanyl.

On September 10, 2025, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at a Huntington address and seized approximately 4.29 kilograms of methamphetamine, 337 grams of fentanyl, a loaded .38-caliber pistol, .38-caliber ammunition, and a digital scale. As part of his guilty plea, McCarver admitted that he and other individuals involved in the conspiracy jointly possessed and intended to distribute the seized methamphetamine and fentanyl for money.

McCarver is scheduled to be sentenced on October 13, 2026, and faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $10 million. As part of his guilty plea, McCarver admitted to an aggravating role in the drug trafficking conspiracy for sentencing purposes as an organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor of criminal activity.

McCarver is among six defendants who pleaded guilty following their indictment on charges alleging they participated in the DTO while it operated from in or about January 2025 to in or about August 2025. The indictment remains pending against three other defendants. An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

McCarver has a criminal history that includes his prior conviction for distribution of fentanyl in United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia on December 17, 2018.

"This defendant wasn't a street-level dealer - he was a leader in a drug trafficking organization that flooded Huntington with methamphetamine while profiting from the addiction and misery of others," said United States Attorney Moore Capito. "Huntington has already endured more than its share of devastation from the opioid epidemic, and this office will aggressively pursue anyone who thinks they can exploit our communities for a paycheck. We will dismantle drug trafficking organizations from the top down, hold their leaders accountable, and work every day to make our neighborhoods safer."

Capito made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Cabell County Sheriff's Office, the Mason County Sheriff's Office, and the Huntington Police Department.

United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Courtney L. Finney is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACERLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. by searching for Case No. 3:25-cr-154.

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