Mercer County indictments include murder, multi-state scam

PRINCETON, W.Va. (WVVA) - Almost 70 people have been indicted by a Mercer County grand jury on crimes ranging from murder to a multi-state scam.

Donald Ray Pennington, 59, was arrested in May after the body of a missing woman from Bluefield was found in Bland County.

Pennington was indicted on charges of first-degree murder, concealment of a deceased human body, strangulation and domestic battery.

In a scam case, Ren Xin Huang, 55, of Flushing, Queens, New York was indicted on charges of financial exploitation of an elderly person, fraudulent schemes and conspiracy.

Huang was arrested in June after an investigation involving a scam targeting a local resident. The victim was called by people pretending to be federal agents who said the person was the subject of a federal investigation and a large sum of money was needed to clear his or her name.

An investigation included a sting operation set up in Bluefield for a money exchange that saw one of the scammers collecting cash. The operation led to the identification of Haung and his subsequent arrest in New Jersey.

Here is a complete list of the indictments: