Two Martinsburg residents were sentenced to five years each in federal prison for running a fentanyl and cocaine operation in Berkeley County, while a third man caught with drugs during a traffic stop that stretched into Maryland got nearly three and a half years behind bars. A fourth man accused of supplying the drugs still awaits his own sentencing.
Brenton Berens, 38, and Shannon Smith, 40, both of Martinsburg, were each sentenced to 60 months in prison for their roles in selling fentanyl and cocaine throughout Berkeley County, according to WFMD. Investigators said the two maintained a residence where drugs were stored and packaged before being distributed. A search of that home turned up nearly one pound of fentanyl, the outlet reported.
Traffic Stop Exposed a Cross-State Pipeline
Malachi Younger, 23, was sentenced to 41 months in prison for trafficking fentanyl and cocaine in both West Virginia and Maryland. Investigators say Younger crossed state lines to continue his drug operation, per the same report. During a traffic stop, officers found more than half a pound of cocaine, over 50 grams of fentanyl, and a quarter-pound of marijuana inside his vehicle.
The station's report also traced the source of the drugs. Authorities traced the drug supply to a Baltimore, Maryland man, Rodney Harry Augustine, who was also convicted for his involvement and is scheduled to be sentenced in 2027. That timeline leaves one piece of the case still unresolved more than a year out.
Federal Case, Unanswered Numbers
The Northern District of West Virginia's U.S. Attorney's Office, in a release titled “Six Sentenced to Combined 37 Years in Federal Prison for Drug Trafficking,” confirms that the Department of Justice describes Malachi Brian Maurice Younger's 41-month sentence for trafficking fentanyl and cocaine in Berkeley County, and confirms Augustine's conviction and 2027 sentencing date. The DOJ's headline cites six people sentenced in the broader case, while WFMD's reporting details sentences for three men; the available information does not explain the discrepancy between those two figures.
What is clear from both accounts is the scale of what investigators pulled out of a single Martinsburg residence and a single traffic stop: nearly a pound of fentanyl from the house, plus more than half a pound of cocaine, over 50 grams of fentanyl, and a quarter-pound of marijuana from Younger's vehicle. Augustine's sentencing next year is expected to close out the remaining piece of the case tied to the Baltimore end of the supply chain.
