Three Bowling Green residents already under indictment in a sprawling meth-trafficking case could potentially face harsher penalties after a new indictment was returned Wednesday.

A federal grand jury in U.S. District Court returned superseding indictments against Leroy Riggsbee, 39, Shantaja S. Hutchins, 47, and Jeffery Glass, 52.

The three are charged with conspiracy to possess methamphetamine with the intent to distribute, being accused of taking part in a meth-dealing scheme in Warren County between June 1, 2022 and March 7, 2023.

Riggsbee is also charged in the indictment with two counts of distribution of meth and two counts of possession of meth with the intent to distribute, while Hutchins is charged with one count each of distribution and possession with the intent to distribute and Glass faces a single count of meth distribution.

The charges against each person are the same as what a federal grand jury brought forth last year in the original indictment, but federal prosecutors have added notice of prior drug-related convictions against Riggsbee and Hutchins that could subject them to additional time behind bars upon conviction.

Riggsbee was convicted in 2016 in Warren Circuit Court for trafficking in meth, while Hutchins has a 2002 conviction in federal court for possession of crack cocaine with the intent to distribute.

With those prior convictions, Riggsbee and Hutchins now face 15 years to life in prison if convicted for their current charges, whereas they previously faced a penalty range of 10 years to life.

The charges against Riggsbee, Hutchins and Glass stemmed from one of the largest drug busts by local law enforcement.

On Jan. 4, 2023, Kentucky State Police troopers attempted to stop a Chevrolet Tahoe traveling north on Interstate 65 for having excessive window tinting, according to a criminal complaint.

The car, driven by Joseph Raby, pulled over and stopped, before Raby sped off and fled from officers, touching off a pursuit that spanned about three miles before Raby’s car crashed into a KSP cruiser, court records show.

After a police dog alerted to the presence of narcotics, officers searched Raby’s car.

“Officers seized a Home Depot box containing 35 bags of suspected methamphetamine weighing approximately 76.125 pounds from the back seat,” the criminal complaint filed last year in U.S. District Court said.

Another bag of suspected meth weighing about 5/8 of a pound was recovered from the center console.

Raby admitted to his involvement in drug dealing during a police interview, according to court records.

“Raby confessed to traveling to the Atlanta area and picking up the methamphetamine found in the vehicle and bringing it back to Bowling Green,” the criminal complaint said. “Raby admitted he was transporting methamphetamine on behalf of Leroy Riggsbee.”

Indictments were returned against seven people charging them with various drug-related offenses, and four people have pleaded guilty, receiving sentences ranging from 25 months to nine years.

Riggsbee, Hutchins and Glass are set to be arraigned on their new indictments on July 24 in federal court, with a jury trial set for Oct. 22.