Parkersburg Man Sentenced For Role In Charleston Drug Trafficking Conspiracy
Tuesday, April 22, 2025, 3:30 P.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
CHARLESTON, W.VA.- On Monday, April 21, 2025, Anthony Michael Mowery, 48, of Parkersburg, West Virginia, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia and was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Joseph R. Goodwin to 108 months in federal prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute a Substance Containing Methamphetamine; and Violating Supervised Release.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa G. Johnston and charging documents filed with the District Court, beginning in and around January 2024, and lasting through May 2024, Mowery conspired with others in a drug trafficking organization that distributed large quantities of methamphetamine throughout the Charleston, West Virginia area.
During the conspiracy, Mowery arranged meetings during which his co-conspirators exchanged large quantities of methamphetamine for distribution.
On May 5, 2024, Mowery arranged for co-conspirator Michael Dale Cain to drive to Charleston to pickup around 3 pounds of methamphetamine from another co-conspirator, Kirt Ray King, that Cain intended to transport to Parkersbug, West Virginia and then distribute the meth to others. After Cain picked up the methamphetamine, he was stopped by federal law enforcement investigators.
Investigators Locate 3 Pounds Of Meth In Vehicle
A subsequent court-authorized search of the vehicle led to investigators locating and seizing the methamphetamine. At that time Cain was immediately taken into custody.
In handing down the sentence on Monday, Judge Chambers noted Mowery’s extensive criminal history that includes prior convictions for unlawful assault, assault, battery, child abuse, destruction of property, and fleeing law enforcement. At the time of the instant offense, Mowery was serving a term of supervised release as a result of a July 2018 conviction for being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm, convicted felon.
Monday’s sentence includes two years to run concurrently with the 108 months, for committing a crime while on supervised release.
Mowery is among four individuals indicted by a federal grand jury in the drug trafficking organization conspiracy. All four have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to federal prison, except Wayne Harkless, 46, of Charleston, West Virginia, who is scheduled to be sentenced on June 23, 2025.
