2 Dayton men plead guilty to drug & gun charges as part of ‘Operation Fly City’

DAYTON, Ohio - Two of the 47 defendants charged this summer as part of the "Operation Fly City" Homeland Security Task Force enforcement operation pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today to drug crimes punishable by at least 10 years and up to life in prison.

Austin Womble, 31, and Pete Craft, 45, both of Dayton, pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.

Womble also admitted to using a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, which is punishable by at least five years and up to a lifetime in prison, to be served consecutive to any other sentence.

According to court documents, in April and May 2026, Womble and Craft sold narcotics, including methamphetamine, to undercover agents at a variety of locations in the greater Dayton area. The locations included the Dayton Motor Motel on Keowee Street, a vacant property on Elmwood Avenue and Womble's residence on Hudson Avenue.

Womble is responsible for selling more than a kilogram of methamphetamine and Craft is responsible for selling approximately half of a kilogram of the drug.

Sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the Court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors at a future hearing.

Dominick S. Gerace II, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Jorge Rosendo, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF); Jeremy Pierczynski, Acting Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Detroit; Dayton Police Chief Eric Henderson; and Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck announced the guilty pleas entered before U.S. District Judge Michael J. Newman. Assistant United States Attorney Erica D. Lunderman is representing the United States in this case.

These cases are part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Cincinnati comprises agents and officers from federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.

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