Major meth supplier pleads guilty to 12 counts

ZANESVILLE— One of the city’s alleged top methamphetamine suppliers pleaded guilty on Thursday to 12 charges, most related to drugs.

Chad D. Ballard was scheduled for a jury trial Thursday in Muskingum County Common Pleas Court. He and his attorney Eric Allen instead opted to enter the pleas at the last minute.

Ballard was arrested in November after agents with the Central Ohio Drug Enforcement Task Force raided his home on 3507 Coopermill Road. Undercover agents had conducted a control buy with Ballard on Nov. 12 before obtaining a search warrant.

During the raid, agents found drugs sitting openly in Ballard’s kitchen. They seized $31,000 in cash and a number of illegal drugs.

Ballard was in possession of 166 grams of methamphetamine, 26 grams of cocaine, 16 grams of heroin and a number of prescription pills, according to his indictment.

“At the time he was arrested, he was one of the major meth suppliers for our county,” said Assistant Muskingum County Prosecutor John Litle.

One drug trafficking charge was dismissed from his 13-count indictment, which includes one count of aggravated possession of drugs, a first degree felony, and another nine counts of drug possession, second, third and fifth-degree felonies.

Ballard also pleaded to two weapons charges, a third-degree felony; his prior criminal record prevents him from owning guns.

The first-degree felony carries a three-to-11 year mandatory prison sentence. Each second-degree felony carries a mandatory two-to-eight-year prison term.

Ballard turned down a joint recommendation between prosecutors and the defense of 10 years in prison.

Each side will now argue for a sentence at a later hearing.

Judge Mark Fleegle ordered a presentence investigation.

Ballard remains in the county jail on a $500,000 bond.

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Twitter: @EricLagatta