A habitual drug trafficker with an exhaustive criminal history received a maximum sentence Tuesday, Dec. 17, before Judge Kevin P. Braig in Logan County Common Pleas Court.
Audric D. Clay, 38, at-large was sentence to a maximum prison term of 12-and-a-half to 18 years for multiple felony convictions, including possession of cocaine, trafficking in cocaine and carrying a concealed weapon.
Prosecutors had recommended a 10-year sentence, and the defense argued for a five-to-seven year term. Judge Braig, however, imposed the maximum sentence allowed by law, citing Clay’s extensive criminal history and the seriousness of his offenses.
“The facts in this case are almost identical to the facts of some of the most serious possession and trafficking cases that have come before this Court during the past five years,” Judge Braig said during sentencing. “Your criminal history is also extensive. You have left the Court no choice but to impose the stiffest penalty it is permitted to impose under Ohio law.”
Clay’s charges stem from an Oct. 19, 2023, vehicle chase involving Logan County Sheriff’s Office deputies. During the pursuit, Clay discarded nearly 100 grams of cocaine and 14 grams of a xylazine/fentanyl mixture from his vehicle. DNA evidence on a backpack containing the drugs tied Clay to the substances.
The chase ended in a cornfield where Clay fled on foot, evading deputies. Officers recovered a 9 mm Taurus handgun discarded during the pursuit and a loaded 9 mm Helwan firearm inside the vehicle.
This conviction adds to Clay’s history of drug-related offenses, including an arrest as recently as September by Bellefontaine Police Department officers while he was out on bond for a prior drug trafficking charge.
Sept. 9, Clay, 37, was taken into custody on an outstanding felony warrant for trafficking in a controlled substance out of Kentucky. Detectives from the Logan County Sheriff’s Office, working alongside Bellefontaine Police’s criminal patrol and K9 units, located Clay walking eastbound on East Sandusky Avenue near North Park Street.
During the arrest, officers seized $772 in cash and a cell phone. Clay was transported to the Logan County Jail, where he was held on the out-of-state warrant.