STAFFORD, VA — A Stafford man accused of participating in a large-scale fentanyl trafficking conspiracy that ended with a chase and his arrest near a Stafford residence is scheduled for a pre-indictment plea hearing later this month in federal court.
William Dion McQueen, also known as "Duke," is scheduled to appear Sept. 22 at 9:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, according to federal court records.
McQueen has not yet been indicted, according to the docket. Federal prosecutors previously received an extension giving them until Sept. 30 to obtain an indictment, with Brinkema ordering that no further extensions would be granted.
McQueen and Raymond Hundley were arrested July 1 on a federal complaint accusing them of conspiring with others to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. McQueen remains in federal custody after declining to contest detention at a July 7 hearing.
The 53-page affidavit supporting the criminal complaint describes a yearslong investigation with numerous connections to Stafford County.
Federal investigators said McQueen and Hundley conspired with Dontavious Whitaker, also known as "Doe," D'Moni Moten, also known as "Mulu," "Lu" and "Moni," and others in the distribution of counterfeit pills containing fentanyl and other opioids.
Investigators said McQueen was connected to a Providence Street address in Stafford as early as 2023, when authorities were investigating shipments of suspected fentanyl pills from California into Northern Virginia.
In October 2023, law enforcement recovered about 15,000 suspected fentanyl pills weighing approximately 1,680 grams from one package delivered to Stafford County, according to the affidavit.
Days later, investigators executing a search warrant at another Stafford County residence recovered a package containing about 20,000 suspected fentanyl pills. Authorities also reported finding a pound of marijuana, two ounces of cocaine, more than $46,000 and a handgun.
Investigators eventually identified more than a dozen packages shipped from the Long Beach, California, area to addresses in Stafford, Prince William and Spotsylvania counties that they believed were connected to the trafficking operation.
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Records also showed one package was sent to a Providence Street address associated with McQueen, according to the affidavit.
Federal agents searched a Providence Street residence connected to McQueen in April 2024. Investigators said a cellphone recovered during that search contained conversations that appeared to discuss bulk purchases of fentanyl pills.
In one exchange, investigators interpreted a message discussing "13" for $10,660 as a reference to 13,000 pills. The affidavit said the resulting price — about 82 cents per pill — was consistent with bulk fentanyl trafficking in the Washington metropolitan area at the time.
The affidavit also describes McQueen's previous encounters with Stafford County law enforcement.
According to federal investigators, McQueen was arrested in September 2022 following a homicide investigation after he shot and killed another person outside his former residence. McQueen told Stafford County Sheriff's Office investigators the shooting was in self-defense, according to the affidavit.
Federal authorities said McQueen was a convicted felon and therefore prohibited from possessing a firearm.
During a search related to that investigation, authorities reported finding several ounces of marijuana, psilocybin, ammunition and more than $40,000. Investigators said the cash was inside a safe containing packaging they believed was consistent with the shipment of illegal drugs.
The affidavit also says McQueen was held at the Stafford County Jail from August 2024 until February 2025.
By March 2026, investigators said McQueen and a woman identified only as an unindicted co-conspirator had moved to another Providence Street residence in Stafford.
Federal authorities conducted surveillance of McQueen during the following months and described several encounters they believed were drug transactions.
On March 26, investigators said they watched McQueen drive to a Stafford parking lot, circle it several times and park. A Dodge Durango pulled up nearby, and McQueen approached the vehicle.
Authorities said McQueen and its occupant exchanged items through the passenger-side window before both vehicles quickly left. The entire encounter lasted about 30 seconds, according to the affidavit.
Investigators also tracked McQueen during frequent trips between Stafford and the Philadelphia area. The affidavit says he often drove roughly two to 2½ hours each way but remained in Philadelphia for less than an hour.
Authorities believed many of those trips involved meetings with Hundley.
Investigators also tracked Hundley on a series of quick flights to Phoenix, Arizona, in May and June, with McQueen allegedly picking him up or dropping him off at airports in the Washington region.
Federal authorities described Phoenix as a source area for fentanyl pills.
The investigation culminated June 30 after Hundley returned from Phoenix on a flight to Baltimore-Washington International Airport.
Investigators said Hundley retrieved a checked dark-colored roller bag before McQueen picked him up in a BMW.
Agents followed the pair from BWI to the Providence Street residence in Stafford, according to the affidavit.
When authorities attempted to stop the BMW, investigators said the vehicle fled before crashing in a grassy area. Both men then ran.
Hundley was quickly apprehended, while McQueen was found hiding in woods some distance from the residence, according to investigators.
Federal agents subsequently searched the BMW, the Stafford residence and the defendants.
Investigators said the roller bag Hundley had checked on his return flight contained a large quantity of powdered material believed to be a controlled substance.
Inside the Stafford residence, authorities reported finding a large quantity of suspected fentanyl pills. The pills and their packaging weighed more than 2,000 grams, or 2 kilograms, according to the affidavit.
McQueen appeared in federal court July 7, waived a preliminary hearing and did not contest detention. A magistrate judge found probable cause and ordered him held while the case proceeds.
The federal docket does not identify what charge or charges McQueen is expected to address at his Sept. 22 plea hearing.
The allegations contained in the criminal complaint have not been proven at trial.
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