5 suspects in Wood County drug ring arrested in raid

2/24/2008

BOWLING GREEN - Five men suspected of being in a Wood County drug ring face charges following arrests and a raid, authorities said.

Marcus Gaston, 35, and Frederick L. Howard, 27, both of Toledo, were charged with complicity to trafficking in drugs. Mr. Gaston is free on a $25,000 bond; Mr. Howard is free on his own recognizance following a court appearance Friday. Both will appear in Bowling Green Municipal Court at 1 p.m. Wednesday.

Macey R. Asztalos, 27, of Wood County's Weston, who was charged with complicity to trafficking in drugs and drug abuse, was held in the Wood County jail without bond until his appearance in Bowling Green Municipal Court at 1 p.m. Wednesday.

Jeffery Loofbourrow, 28, also of Weston, was arrested on an unrelated warrant for failure to pay child support. He, too, was held in the county jail without bond. No hearing was scheduled when the court closed Friday.

David C. Hedges, 19, of Weston was cited for possession of drug paraphernalia.

Mr. Gaston and Mr. Howard were arrested about 1 p.m. Thursday near Bowling Green after the sale of suspected drugs to deputies assigned to the sheriff's narcotics unit.

Information obtained as a result of the arrests led to two search warrants being served at two Weston homes. More than $3,500 in cash, a substance believed to be cocaine, and some stolen furniture were seized, the sheriff's office said.

During the investigation, one of two dogs described by deputies as pit bulls charged at deputies. One of the dogs fled when a deputy fired a gun. As of last night, the dog was presumed uninjured but was not captured, Wood County Dog Warden Rodney Cook said.