CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Antonio Shelby Jr., 33, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced on Thursday, February 5, 2026, to 12 years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for possession with intent to distribute quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

A federal jury found Shelby guilty of both counts on August 19, 2025, following a two-day trial. Evidence at trial showed that on January 10, 2024, a law enforcement officer conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Shelby in the Institute area of Kanawha County. The officer smelled the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle, asked Shelby to exit the vehicle, and told him that the vehicle would be searched. Shelby fled in the vehicle, driving at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour on West Virginia Route 25 and Interstate 64 while trying to elude law enforcement.

The pursuit ended when Shelby crashed his vehicle while attempting to exit I-64 at South Charleston. Officers encountered Shelby climbing out of the vehicle and detained him. When officers lifted Shelby from the ground, they found a Keltec model P3 AT .380-caliber pistol, loaded and with a round in the chamber, on the ground underneath him. Officers also seized over 60 grams of methamphetamine in multiple baggies, over 100 grams of fentanyl, marijuana, digital scales, and $2,495 from the vehicle.

Shelby has a criminal history that includes prior felony convictions for fleeing from a police officer and reckless driving causing serious impairment of a body function.

"This defendant possessed and transported distribution-level quantities of lethal drugs into our community while armed. He doubled down on his disregard for our people and their safety by fleeing from law enforcement, creating a substantial risk of serious injury or death to the public and responding officers," said United States Attorney Moore Capito. "We are unrelenting in our commitment to attacking the drug crisis with the utmost toughness."

Capito commended the law enforcement agencies involved in apprehending Shelby, investigating the case, and securing the convictions at trial: the Nitro Police Department, the Dunbar Police Department, the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

United States District Judge Irene C. Berger imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorneys JC MacCallum and Jeremy B. Wolfe prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACERLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-197.

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