Four Sentenced for Methamphetamine Trafficking

WEST VIRGINIA - Four people were sentenced for methamphetamine trafficking in the Northern District of West Virginia.

Terry Lee Mason, Jr., 37, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was sentenced to 324 months for the possession with intent to distribute 50 or more grams of crystal methamphetamine. Robert Joseph Wilson, III, 38, of Hagerstown, Maryland, was sentenced to 300 months for aiding and abetting the distribution of five grams or more of methamphetamine. According to court documents, Mason, also known as "TJ," and Wilson, also known as "Robbie," worked with others to sell methamphetamine in Berkeley County.

Brenda Sams, 44, of Petersburg, West Virginia, was sentenced to 70 months in prison for distributing methamphetamine. According to court documents and statements made in court, Sams sold methamphetamine in Grant County. Sams has a prior drug conviction in the Northern District of West Virginia, as well as state drug and theft convictions.

Melinda Kay Zirbs, 57, of Elkins, West Virginia, was sentenced to 56 months in federal prison for the possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. According to court documents and statements made in court, Zirbs was under investigation for drug trafficking and officers seized methamphetamine and more than $20,000 in her home.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kyle Kane and Stephen Warner prosecuted the cases on behalf of the government.

The investigations were conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Maryland State Police; the Hagerstown Police Department; the Martinsburg Police Department; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Washington County, Maryland, Narcotics Task Force; the Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the Frederick County, Maryland, Sheriff's Department; the Potomac Highlands Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; and the Mountain Region Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative.

U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided over the Mason and Wilson sentencings.

Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided over the Sams and Zirbs hearings.

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