Five Indicted in Columbus West Side Human Trafficking, Drug Ring

A Franklin County grand jury has indicted five individuals connected to a criminal organization operating on Columbus's West Side, accused of human trafficking, drug trafficking, and violent crimes aimed at expanding their illicit enterprise. The investigation, led by the Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force under Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission, began in January 2025 following received tips. The ringleader, Justin Davis, faces 25 felony charges, including trafficking in persons, drug offenses, money laundering, and weapons violations, while his associates face multiple felony counts involving prostitution promotion, drug trafficking, and related offenses. The group allegedly sold cocaine, fentanyl, and buprenorphine, and trafficked people for commercial sex work between November 2024 and November 2025. Some members remain at large, while others, including Davis and Jeffrey Willis, are in custody. Authorities emphasize the coordinated local and federal effort to dismantle this operation, which operated from several locations including near a school.