CHARLESTON, W.Va. — An Ohio man charged with playing in a role in a string of overdoses in Charleston last September has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge.
Anton Marcel Jeffries, 32, of Akron, Ohio, pleaded guilty Monday in Kanawha County Circuit Court to possession of fentanyl, a misdemeanor.
The prosecution agreed to dismiss two other counts as part of the plea deal and Jeffries was remanded to federal custody to face drug charges.
There were 35 overdoses in Charleston in less than 24 hours in Sept. 17-18, 2025. None of the overdoses were fatal.
Investigators believed the fentanyl was laced with the tranquilizer drug xylazine, or commonly referred to as the zombie drug.
Charleston police took Jeffries into custody the next day. He had just been released from federal prison, investigators said.
Charleston Deputy Police Chief Jason Webb said at the time they were thankful to be able to make a quick arrest.
“It was intense, there were a lot of people that missed out on a lot of sleep, a lot of time with their families but those are sacrifices that our offers make and our investigators make to make sure that we don’t lose a human life and if that’s what they’re going to do, I can’t be more proud of them,” Webb said.
Jeffries pleaded guilty Monday before Kanawha County Circuit Judge Dave Hardy. Hardy sentenced him to 360 days of time served. He’ll now face the federal charges.