Gloucester pair arrested on New Kent drug charges

Two Gloucester County residents have been picked up by Twin Rivers Drug Task Force personnel on charges incurred in New Kent County relating to crack cocaine trafficking.

Acting on a tip, officers confronted Melvin W. Billups Jr., 36, and Christine A. McKinney, 33, in the parking lot of the McDonald’s restaurant in West Point and arrested the pair without incident on Aug. 5, said New Kent Detective Joey McLaughlin.

Both had been indicted by a New Kent Circuit Court grand jury on July 23. Those indictments had been promptly sealed until the suspects could be apprehended.

Billups is charged with one count each of cocaine distribution and conspiracy to distribute. McKinney faces two distribution counts and a single conspiracy charge.

Both suspects were taken to Henrico Jail East where they are being held without bond pending Aug. 11 arraignments in circuit court.

McLaughlin said the arrests resulted from an ongoing investigation over the past several months into the area’s illegal narcotics trade. More arrests are expected, he said.

The task force consists of officers from New Kent, Charles City, West Point, King William, and the state police.