Source: Office of United States Attorneys
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Silvester Barcenas, 23, a Mexican national, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute a quantity of methamphetamine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 12, 2024, Barcenas arrived in Charleston, West Virginia, with approximately 3.9 kilograms of methamphetamine in a vehicle he had driven from South Carolina, where he was living at the time. Barcenas admitted that he possessed the methamphetamine, that a co-conspirator directed him to deliver the methamphetamine to another individual in Charleston, and that he delivered the methamphetamine to the individual as instructed.
Barcenas is scheduled to be sentenced on June 30, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release, and a $1 million fine.
Barcenas and two other Mexican nationals were indicted by a federal grand jury as the result of a joint investigation by federal and local law enforcement into a conspiracy that was responsible for delivering large quantities of methamphetamine to West Virginia and elsewhere from Houston. The indictment against co-defendants German Francisco Diaz, also known as “Trulio,” 40, Braulio Villa-Chairez, also known as “Raul,” 31, remains pending. The indictment alleges the three Mexican nationals conspired to distribute quantities of methamphetamine in the Charleston area from in or about March 2024 to in or about October 2024. Trial is scheduled for April 15, 2025. An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Israel Chaires-Villa, 22, a Mexican national, pleaded guilty on February 13, 2025, to possession with intent to distribute a quantity of methamphetamine as a result of the joint investigation and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 2, 2025.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT), which is composed of the Charleston Police Department, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, the Nitro Police Department, the St. Albans Police Department and the South Charleston Police Department.
United States Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy B. Wolfe 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. 2:24-cr-176.
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