Nitro man arrested after allegedly drugging couple

CHARLESTON, WV (WOWK) — A Nitro man was arrested Friday after allegedly drugging two people, including a 16-year-old girl, and then soliciting them for sexual materials.

According to the criminal complaint, the male victim told police that he and his 16-year-old girlfriend, the female victim, were invited to the Main Avenue apartment of 27-year-old Anthony Todd Watson of Nitro on May 11.

The female victim had previously helped arrange an interview between the male victim and Watson, the manager of a Nitro McDonald’s.

The two victims came to Watson’s apartment and when they entered, Watson allegedly offered the female victim a pink pill and said, “You have to take this.” When she declined, Watson handed the female victim an open, pink beer and told her to drink it, according to the charges. The female victim accepted the drink, then Watson told the male victim to take a sip, which he also accepted.

The male victim told police he was offered a vape, which he discovered after consuming contained Delta-8 THC. Both victims later noted that they were nauseous and their pupils were dilated.

Watson then allegedly offered the male victim money for sexually explicit images or videos of the two victims. The lawsuit states that Watson also asked the couple if they wanted to have sex in his bedroom while he was taking the recordings.

The male victim contacted his mother, who picked the couple up from the residence. Both victims went to the Putnam County Hospital because they believed they had been drugged.

The female victim gave an officer a video showing her dilated pupils, as well as a picture of the couple on Watson’s couch, the complaint states. The male victim’s mother said she saw the couple’s dilated pupils when she picked them up.

The male victim’s toxicology report showed that he had ecstasy, amphetamines, benzodiazepines and THC in his system.

On June 2, Nitro police executed a search warrant on Watson’s residence and seized several alcoholic beverages, an iPhone, and two laptops. Watson was then taken to the Nitro Police Station for questioning.

According to the complaint, Watson told police he offered the female victim an antidepressant and admitted to offering the couple an alcoholic beverage. He also said the drink the two were sipping contained ecstasy, which they had purchased from a co-worker, and an antidepressant. He told police it was “a one-time thing” and the beer was “for himself,” the complaint states. Watson also said he jokingly asked the female victim for foot pictures.

According to the complaint, Watson said he purchased inappropriate images of a 14- to 15-year-old girl but deleted them when he found out her age. He also showed officers a group he accessed on X, formerly known as Twitter, where officers found child pornography.

Watson has been charged with two counts of attempted murder or assault by poison and is being held at the South Central Regional Jail on $50,000 cash only bail.