DPNews@DominionPost.com
CLARKSBURG – Two West Virginia residents have been sentenced for their roles in a drug trafficking organization that sold large amounts of methamphetamine, fentanyl and cocaine in north-central West Virginia, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew L. Harvey.
Jeffrey Marsh, 47, of Morgantown, was sentenced to 78 months in prison. Bobbie Jo Phillips, 39, also of Morgantown, West Virginia, was sentenced time served after serving 22 months in federal prison. Phillips and Marsh worked within the drug trafficking operation, led by Rodney Johnson, in the Morgantown, West Virginia, area. Phillips’ residence was searched during the investigation, and officers seized a handgun, cash, crack cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, and drug paraphernalia.
Johnson was sentenced to 188 months in prison in March 2025. Of the 25 defendants in this case, 23, including Johnson, Phillips, and Marsh, have been sentenced to a combined 196 years in prison.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Zelda Wesley prosecuted the case on behalf of the government.
This case was investigated by the Mon Metro Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative. The task force consists of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the West Virginia State Police; the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Office; the Monongalia County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office; the Morgantown Police Department; the WVU Police Department; the Granville Police Department; and the Star City Police Department.
Fentanyl has been designated by President Donald Trump as a weapon of mass destruction due to its extreme lethality which poses a grave threat to public safety, even in trace amounts. This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime, and repel the invasion of illegal immigration.
Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.
