By Alan Olson, The Intelligencer
WHEELING, W.Va. — U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld said the connections he’ll make in his new role chairing a regional anti-drug trafficking board will help tremendously over the coming years.
Ihlenfeld was named the chairperson of the Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Executive Board Thursday. Composed of drug task forces from Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia, the AHIDTA was responsible for nearly 2,400 drug arrests in 2021, along with the seizure of substantial quantities of heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine, as well as firearms.
As chair of the board, Ihlenfeld said he hopes to draw from the breadth of experience across the Appalachian region to better combat drug trafficking, along with the board’s strategic and intelligence resources.
“Probably what excites me the most is the intel,” Ihlenfeld said Thursday. “AHIDTA funds people through overtime, it funds investigative needs, it funds equipment…