WHEELING — A Weirton man is facing up to 20 years in federal prison after admitting to his involvement in a fentanyl distribution operation.

Daniel Paul Truax, 46, admitted to federal charges which alleged he was involved in the distribution of fentanyl in the area, according to information provided by the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia.

According to court documents, Truax was selling fentanyl for a drug trafficking organization that stretched from Chicago to the Ohio Valley including Weirton.

Truax is facing up to 20 years in federal prison in relation to the charges. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clayton Reid and Carly Nogay are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government, with U.S. Magistrate Judge James P. Mazzone presiding over the case.

Investigative agencies involved in the case include the Hancock-Brooke-Weirton Drug Task Force; the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the United States Marshals Service; the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office; the Brooke County Sheriff’s Office; the Weirton Police Department; the West Virginia State Police; the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office; and the Steubenville Police Department.