Two Arrested in Sullivan County Amidst Multistate Drug Conspiracy Investigation

Following a lengthy drug conspiracy investigation that included 17 search warrants across multiple states, a pair of Sullivan County residents were arrested last week.  It was reported that the two suspects were not part of the original group that was being investigated as part of this case.

Two Arrested Following Search Warrant in Sullivan County

In a press release from the Sullivan County Sheriff's Office on Thursday October 6th, it was reported that a multistage drug conspiracy investigation and takedown had originated with the District Attorney's office in Orange County yielded two local arrests.  The report one on to detail that of the 17 search warrants executed during the investigation, three were Sullivan County based.

One of the aforementioned search warrants was executed at 87 Mohican Trail, Glen Spey, which is in Sullivan County, on Monday September 26, 2022.  It was during this time that two arrests were made, Ronald S. Lybolt, 30 years old, of Glen Spey, and Tara L. Taylor, 34 years old, of Grahamsville were arrested by Sheriff's Deputies and charged with criminal possession of a weapon and issued appearance tickets for a future court date.

While police were raiding the residence, it was alleged that the two suspects were given an alert that the 87 Mohican Trail residence was instead 'being burglarized.' A surveillance team spotted the two suspects and stopped them one their way to the residence, and at the time, they were found to be in possession of a 'sawed of .12 Gage shotgun and a .45 Caliber pistol.' The police report indicated that Taylor and Lybolt thought the situation was a 'rip-off' and were en route to the residence with the intention to intervene.

Mike Schiff, Sullivan County Sheriff provided comment on why drug investigations can be particularly dangerous:

When you have drugs and money, you usually have illegal weapons involved and people willing to use them. The two suspects who were arrested were not part of the original group that was being targeted in this case.

No additional information regarding the status of the initial drug investigation was provided in the report.