GLADE SPRING -- A law-enforcement sting operation has led to federal drug charges against a local postmaster, and charges are pending against other people, authorities said.

Janet Davenport, a Glade Spring resident and the postmaster of St. Paul, was charged last week with conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, according to court documents. She is free on $10,000 bond.

The documents describe an investigation aided by a confidential source who is "an admitted member of the drug culture," and who made several drug buys over two months that were supervised by law enforcement.

The operation, which involved local, state and federal authorities, focused on Davenport and a longtime female friend.

No charges have been filed against the friend, but Glade Spring Police Chief Matthew Mullins said Wednesday that charges would be forthcoming against her and several others.

Davenport's friend is addicted to oxycodone, according to an affidavit by a special agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration. She sold the prescription drug she obtained from Davenport and returned the proceeds to Davenport, the affidavit said.

The purchases took place at the friend's residence, where Davenport would show up with a prescription of oxycodone for her friend to sell, the affidavit said.

Federal authorities searched Davenport's residence on June 24 and found a bottle of prescription hydrocodone. When questioned, Davenport told investigators that she and her friend had been "trading" pills for about two years, and that her friend sells hydrocodone tablets for $7 each, the affidavit said.

Daniel Gilbert is a staff writer at the Bristol Herald Courier.