Man Charged With Selling Cocaine in State College Area

A State College man is facing 18 felony charges after investigators said he sold large amounts of cocaine to a confidential informant on multiple occasions.

James T. Turner, 40, was arrested on Thursday following an investigation by State College police, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, other law enforcement agencies and a statewide investigating grand jury.

The informant testified that he began buying small amounts of cocaine for personal use from Turner in early 2024, according to the grand jury presentment. Around March or April of 2025, the informant said, he began purchasing five ounces of cocaine weekly for $5,000. The purchases occurred in residential neighborhoods in Ferguson and Harris townships, according to the criminal complaint.

The larger amount of cocaine was delivered uncut and the informant cut and prepared it for resale in smaller bags, according to the presentment. He testified that several times Turner directed him to deliver smaller bags of cocaine to customers on Turner’s behalf.

A borough detective learned from the informant in July 2025 that Turner was selling cocaine, the grand jury wrote. Police then set up controlled purchases in which the informant bought one ounce of cocaine from Turner for $1,000 in July and three ounces for $3,000 in August, according to the presentment.

At a third controlled buy in January 2026, the informant allegedly gave $3,000 to Turner, who said he would deliver three ounces of cocaine in a few days. Turner “continued to make excuses about getting the drugs” and did not deliver them or return the money, the detective testified.

Turner is charged with 15 counts of possession with intent, one count of attempted possession with intent, one count of dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities and one count of criminal use of a communication facility.

He was arraigned by District Judge Gregory Koehle, who set unsecured bail at $100,000. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Oct. 28.

The grand jury that recommended charges against Turner is one that also investigated and recommended charges against 14 people for an alleged cocaine trafficking ring that operated out of two off-campus Penn State fraternities. Court documents do not indicate a connection between the two cases.