Two Charleston Men Sentenced to Prison for Federal Drug Crimes

 CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Two Charleston men were sentenced today to prison for federal drug crimes. Darius Coles, 23, and Joshua Lawson, 31, were sentenced to 78 and 60 months in prison respectively.

According to court documents, Coles previously pleaded guilty to distribution of methamphetamine and admitted that he met a confidential informant at the Go-Mart near Bigley Avenue in Charleston to collect $1,200 for an outstanding drug debt on January 27, 2021.  Coles collected the $1,200 and fronted the confidential informant an additional amount of methamphetamine to be paid for later.

According to the plea agreement and statements made in court, Lawson previously pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute five grams or more of methamphetamine and admitted that after he left a meeting with his methamphetamine source of supply on December 27, 2020, officers with the Charleston Police Department conducted a traffic stop on his vehicle in the 600 block of Ruffner Avenue.  An officer performed a pat down of Lawson and found an ounce of methamphetamine hidden in his groin area.  Lawson admitted he intended to distribute the methamphetamine. 

Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Charleston Police Department, the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT), the U.S. Marshals Service and the West Virginia State Police.

Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. imposed the sentences.  Assistant United States Attorney Monica Coleman handled the prosecutions.

The investigation was part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations, and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.