STEUBENVILLE — A man described as the kingpin of a massive fentanyl and cocaine trafficking operation in the Steubenville area must serve at least 16 years behind bars, Jefferson County Common Pleas Judge Michelle Miller ruled.

Lavocni Brown, 41, formerly of Pennsylvania Avenue, also was ordered to forfeit a 2014 Cadillac CTS, a 2018 Audi A6, a 2020 Chevrolet Suburban and $6,540 in cash, all deemed proceeds of the drug trafficking operation.

Brown, convicted of six counts of possessing drugs including cocaine and fentanyl-related compounds, was indicted in December after the Jefferson County Drug Task Force raided properties belonging to him and two alleged associates — Lionel Robert Lindsey Jr., 52, 112 McDowell Ave., and Cherie R. Nelson 55, 614 Lawson Ave. — and reported finding more than 18 pounds of cocaine and fentanyl.

Prosecutor Jane Hanlin said the judge “determined that Brown was a major drug offender due to the sheer weight of the drugs involved in the investigation.” In addition to his mandatory 16-year minimum prison sentence as a MDO, Brown faces two-to-five years of post-release control.

Task force members reported finding more than 18 pounds of cocaine and fentanyl at properties belonging to the three of them, and more drugs when they searched additional properties a week later. Authorities allege Brown, lodged in the Jefferson County Jail at the time of the raids on an unrelated misdemeanor, controlled the drug operation from jail, even giving Lindsey and Nelson orders from behind bars.

“Mr. Brown is perhaps one of the most prolific drug dealers in the history of Jefferson County,” Hanlin said. “For years he was able to bring this poison into our community; that stops today. I would specifically like to offer my thanks to Sgt. Rob Cook of the Steubenville Police Department for his tireless work on this matter, He, along with the Jefferson County Drug Task Force, were instrumental in bringing Lavocni Brown’s reign to an end.”