Charleston Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl Crime

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Khalif Marquee Coleman, 35, of Charleston, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of a mixture containing a detectable amount of fentanyl.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Coleman admitted to arranging the sales of mixtures containing fentanyl to confidential informants asking to purchase heroin in Charleston in seven separate transactions between May 2, 2022, and September 23, 2022. All but one of these transactions occurred at a Chesterfield Avenue residence in Charleston and the mixtures totaled approximately 92.64 grams.

Coleman also admitted to arranging seven additional sales of mixtures containing fentanyl in August and September, 2022, at or near the Chesterfield Avenue residence.

On September 28, 2022, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at the Chesterfield Avenue residence and found mixtures containing fentanyl totaling 55.97 grams, scales, drug packaging materials, and $5,926. Some of the cash recovered during the search was prerecorded buy money from the sales to the confidential informants.

Coleman is scheduled to be sentenced on June 8, 2023, and faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 40 years in prison, four years of supervised release, and a $5 million fine.

United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT), and the assistance provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Mid-Atlantic Laboratory.

United States District Judge Irene C. Berger presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Julie M. White is prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:22-cr-198.

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