Three men plead guilty to federal charges in Beckley

BECKLEY, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that three men pleaded guilty to federal charges in Beckley.

James Edward Chambers, 44, of Glen White, West Virginia, pleaded guilty to distribution of cocaine. He admitted that on Aug. 28, 2014, he sold cocaine to a confidential informant near Robert C. Byrd Drive in Beckley.

Sean Scott Hafesh, 26, of Trenton, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to distribution of heroin. He admitted that on Sept. 24, 2013, he sold heroin to a confidential informant on Skyline Drive in Beaver.

Chambers and Hafesh both face up to 20 years in federal prison and a $1 million fine. They are scheduled to be sentenced on May 20, 2015.

Michael Erwin Basham, 35, of Glen Daniel, West Virginia, pleaded guilty to using a communications device to commit a felony. He admitted that on Aug. 22, 2014, he used a phone to arrange the sale of oxycodone to a confidential informant.

Basham faces up to four years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 24, 2015.

United States District Judge Irene C. Berger presided over the plea hearings.

The cases are being investigated by the Beckley/Raleigh County Drug and Violent Crime Unit.

The cases are being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and opiates. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.

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