Operation Big Brother concluded: final defendant pleads guilty
Monday morning, the Dubois County Prosecutor’s Office entered into a plea agreement with Brian A. Perez, 29, Huntingburg, as part of the 2014 drug interdiction operation, Operation Big Brother.
Perez’s case was the final case to be resolved as part of this operation.
Perez agreed to serve a 15-year prison sentence at the Indiana Department of Correction for dealing in methamphetamine as a Class B felony. The agreement also called for him to pay $590.00 in restitution to the Dubois County Sheriff’s Community Strike Fund.
On June 5, 2014, 16 individuals charged with various drug dealing offenses were arrested as part of the drug raid known as Operation Big Brother. This operation was spearheaded by the Dubois County Sheriff’s Department and the Dubois County Prosecutor’s Office.
On October 13, 2015, Brock E. Gill, 24, Jasper, another individual arrested as part of Operation Big Brother, entered into a plea agreement that resolved several cases he had pending out of the Dubois County Superior Court. In total, Mr. Gill is receiving a 7-year prison sentence at the Indiana Department of Correction for Dealing in Methamphetamine as a Class B felony, followed by a two and a half year sentence on work release for attempted auto theft as a Level 6 felony.
He will also receive an additional 2-year prison sentence if he fails to testify truthfully against a co-defendant in another pending drug dealing case. Mr. Gill is required to pay $180.00 in restitution to the Dubois County Sheriff’s Community Strike Fund.
Both Mr. Perez and Mr. Gill are set for sentencing on November 25, 2015.
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In total, the 16 Operation Big Brother cases have resulted in sentences totaling 165.5 years, with 135 years of jail time.
“Initially, when we began this operation, we knew there was a problem with drug dealing in Dubois County, and we hoped to significantly decrease the problem and increase public awareness about it,” Beth Sermersheim, Chief Deputy Prosecutor with the Dubois County Prosecutor’s Office, said. “However, as the operation progressed, we realized that the supply of drugs available here is a bigger problem than we originally thought.”
According to Sermersheim, although the operations have removed drug dealers from the community, these vacant positions are quickly filled by new suppliers.
“However, even though we can’t stop the problem, we won’t stop trying to combat it. We want to continue to send a message to drug dealers in this community that we know who you are, we are watching you, and we will continue to pursue criminal charges against you,” she said.
Sermersheim and Narcotics Officer John Anderson also led Operation Double Trouble, the second drug raid completed as a joint effort between the Dubois County Prosecutor’s Office and the Dubois County Sheriff’s Department.
In total, through two rounds of arrests, 18 individuals were served with arrest warrants for drug dealing charges in Dubois and Spencer Counties as part of Operation Double Trouble.
On October 27, 2015, Stuart W. Noffsinger, 31, Richland, who was arrested as part of this operation, pled guilty to dealing in methamphetamine as a Level 3 felony. Noffsinger is receiving a 14-year prison sentence at the Indiana Department of Correction. He is also required to pay $580.00 in restitution to the Dubois County Sheriff’s Community Strike Fund. His sentencing is scheduled to occur November 19, 2015.
The Dubois County Sheriff’s Department and the Prosecutor’s Office plan to continue to jointly carry out large-scale drug operations, and they are currently in the midst of their third operation.
