Sixteen Porter County residents, all but one from Kouts or Hebron, were among 37 people indicted following an extensive multi-jurisdictional investigation of methamphetamine distribution.

The 62-count federal indictment was announced on Wednesday at a press conference at the Porter County Sheriff’s Department. That indictment alleges a conspiracy to distribute 500 grams of more of methamphetamine from January 2004 through June 2008; and a conspiracy to distribute 100 kilograms of marijuana from November 2006 to June 2008.

The indictment also alleges one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; two counts of maintaining a place for the purpose of manufacturing methamphetamine; multiple counts of distribution, and possession with the intent to distribute, methamphetamine; and numerous related narcotics charges.

Porter County residents named in the indictment:

•From Valparaiso: Richard W. Mote, aka “Scooter Boy,” 34.

•From Kouts: Richard Kasper, aka “Tricky,” 30; Timothy Bartruff, aka “Beefy,” 50; Kathleen Conley, aka “Kat,” 50; Kenneth W. Harris, 43; Tawnee L. McCluskey, 21; and Jeri L. Wright, 46.

•From Hebron: Stacey L. Judd, aka “Weirdo,” 48; Stacy C. Simpson, 34; and Amanda Cooper, 27.

Porter County residents named in a separate indictment:

•From Kouts: Debra A. Howard, 48; James E. Patrick, 48; and Brandi May, 35.

•From Hebron: David R. Duffala, 27; Jenette Holder, 24; and Matthew Holder, 25.

The others indicted are residents of Wheatfield, Rensselaer, Crown Point, Lowell, Goodland, Cedar Lake, Wolcott, Knox, and Rockville, Ind.; of Chicago; and of Denver, Colo.

Participating in the investigation were the DEA, the PCSP; the Valparaiso Police Department; the Kouts Police Department; the Hebron Police Department; the Porter County Drug Task Force; the Jasper County Sheriff’s Police; the Indiana State Police; the Indiana Department of Natural Resources; Lake County HIDTA; the ATF; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the Internal Revenue Service; and the Porter County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Most of those named in the indictment have been taken into custody over the past several days in the Northern District of Indiana, Missouri, and Colorado, and have already made or are soon scheduled to make their initial appearance before a U.S. magistrate judge in Hammond, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has detained without bond, or is seeking to detain, Kasper, Bartruff, Judd, Conley, Harris, Mote, Cooper, and two others named in the indictment.

For Porter County Sheriff Dave Lain the indictment is a vindication of the decision made in 2006 to detach a PCSP officer to the DEA, a decision which at the time became an issue in the election-year race for Sheriff. “This illustrates the exact reason why we opted to assign an officer to a federal task force,” he said. “Federal agencies provide us with vast resources we could never hope to have in hand ourselves. This investigation started right here in Porter County and we saw things balloon from there. Something small grew into something large, I think I can legitimately say organized crime.”

The indictment also goes far in demonstrating, Lain said, the need for citizens concerned about criminal activity in their communities to be patient. “I talk a lot about public participation and buy-in. This shows that the public really needs to believe that local law enforcement is out there working day and night on the concerns residents have. They know there’s a problem but they don’t see things happening immediately. By the nature of the beast, it takes time and it takes clandestine activity. This was a 17-month investigation by hundreds of police officers in several states.”

Lain urged residents to continue to be vigilant and noted that a large-scale investigation like this one can emerge from a single telephone tip. “It can come from something as simple as calling in something suspicious,” he said. “We rely on residents’ knowing that something is askew in their neighborhood. Consistently we get calls from people who see strange cars or suspicious subjects. People have a sense when something is wrong, and they need to call their local department for things to blossom.”

Posted 6/26/2008