Man pleads guilty to role in drug trafficking organization in West Virginia

BECKLEY, W.Va. (WVVA) – The Department of Justice announced that a 32-year-old man from Beckley pleaded guilty for his role in a drug trafficking organization.

According to court documents and affidavits, in April 2024, 32-year-old Demetrius Terrell Burns obtained fentanyl from a supplier, which he supplied to co-defendant Tilford Joe Bradley Jr. Burns admitted that he told Bradley over the phone that he had received a shipment of “raw” fentanyl and offered to sell Bradley $1,800 worth of fentanyl.

The Justice Department said both men discussed adding a cutting agent to fentanyl to make more profit when it was sold.

The Justice Department said Burns pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, fentanyl and cocaine base.

Burns is scheduled to be sentenced on February 14, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a minimum of three years of supervised release, and a fine of one million dollars.