SEATTLE — A drug-and-alcohol counselor at a Seattle high school pleaded not guilty Friday to federal drug charges.
Robert Henry Smith, 59, made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Seattle, wearing a bright blue Rainier Beach High School sweatshirt with orange lettering. He was arrested Thursday night after he was indicted on charges of conspiracy to distribute and distribution of oxycodone.
Court papers say a confidential informant working with Seattle police made four controlled buys of oxycodone from him beginning last month.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisca Borichewski said no evidence suggests any of Smith’s drug dealing took place on school property or involved students.
Smith has been placed on paid leave from the Seattle School District. District spokeswoman Patti Spencer says he’s worked there since at least 1992, and has been a drug and alcohol counselor since 1998.
Smith’s attorney, Christopher Black, declined to comment after Friday’s hearing.
Also arrested was 37-year-old Adrian Demetrius Johnson, who prosecutors say was Smith’s supplier. Johnson has previously been convicted of federal drug charges, which is part of the reason federal prosecutors, rather than state prosecutors, are handling the case.
According to Seattle Police Detective Rudy Gonzales, the informant paid Smith $80 per pill, and the four controlled buys ranged from 10 to 60 tablets.
In court papers, Borichewski wrote that during the final controlled drug buy from Smith, investigators questioned two people they saw outside his home in Skyway, south of Seattle, and the pair reported they had purchased oxycodone from him at least 20 times.
Prosecutors requested that the pair remain in custody, saying there was a risk they could flee and a risk that potential witnesses might be intimidated.
Trial was set for Feb. 16.
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