The suspected instigator in the racially motivated Cincinnati brawl that left one mother unconscious has now been slapped with federal drug charges — on top of the laundry list of offenses he’s facing for his role in the brutal beatdown.
Jermaine Mathews, 39, was indicted for conspiracy and intent to distribute a whopping “40 grams or more of fentanyl,” the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio wrote in a press release on Monday.
He was also charged with “operating a premises on Kenton Street in Cincinnati for the purpose of trafficking narcotics” alongside three other co-conspirators based in the city, according to the release.
“Mathews, who was described as a primary ‘coordinator’ of the July 26 brawl in downtown Cincinnati, was on bond after being charged locally with aggravated riot and assault,” the US Attorney’s Office added.
The violent ringleader was re-arrested Monday by federal agents and officers with the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, according to prosecutors.
Mathews, and eight others, were first snatched up by Cincinnati police earlier this month and hit with a slew of charges for their alleged roles in the near-deadly scrum that left one local woman — only identified as Holly — badly beaten and unconscious around 3 a.m. outside a downtown nightclub where she was celebrating a friend’s birthday.
Alex Tchervinski, 45, was caught on video shouting racial slurs at one of the black men in the group before slapping him in the face.
It remains unclear what sparked the brawl.
But chaos quickly ensued as the group of black men descended on Tchervinski and Holly, who are both white. Seven people — all of them black — were arrested and charged for their involvement in the attack, WLWT5 reported.
Holly, meanwhile, came within inches of losing her life. She was captured in the video lying face-up as blood poured out of her mouth.
Matthews, who was arraigned on Aug. 14, is the second person arrested in connection with the beating to face unrelated federal changes.
Montianez Merriweather, 34, was also federally charged with illegally possessing a firearm as a previously convicted felon on Aug. 13.
Tchervinski, who suffered injuries to his face from the fight, was eventually hit with disorderly conduct for his role after the lack of charges sparked public outrage.
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