4th Georgia man involved in 2018 death of Fairmont woman given 50 year sentence
Jan. 27—FAIRMONT — A federal judge has sentenced a Georgia man to 50 years in prison for his role in the 2018 death of Courtney Dubois, of Fairmont.
Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh sentenced Seddrick Diamond Banks, 30, of Cartersville, Georgia, for his role in a vast drug ring that operated in three counties in North Central West Virginia and spanned all the way from the foothills of Georgia's Blue Ridge Mountains.
During a June 2021 trial in U.S. District Court in Clarksburg, federal and local drug agents testified that Banks trafficked and distributed more than 4.5 kilograms of methamphetamine, as well as cocaine hydrochloride and fentanyl, in Marion, Harrison and Lewis counties.
Evidence and testimony found that Banks and three other men from Cartersville, Georgia traveled from Georgia to West Virginia, where they brought drugs in for sale. They stayed at different motels and hotels and other locations to use as their base of operations.
Investigators found that on Aug. 9, 2018, Dubois, who was 20 at the time of her drug overdose from fentanyl, Banks and a co-conspirator took her body to the Cartersville, Georgia area where they dismembered her and dumped her remains in the Bartow County, Georgia landfill. She overdosed at a motel in Jane Lew.
"This was a horrible series of events. The facts placed a powerful spotlight on the depravity of the drug trade and the extent that those involved will go to conduct their activities. Nothing can bring back Ms. Dubois to her family, but the prosecution and the sentencing sent the only message we can send: these types of crimes will be severely punished. The prosecution is the result of excellent work by law enforcement in multiple jurisdictions and a dedicated prosecution team intent on rendering justice. I once again offer my condolences to the family of Ms. Dubois," said then-U.S. Attorney Bill Powell.
During Banks' July 2021 trial, the jury deliberated for two hours before handing down a guilty verdict for one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute controlled substances; one count of possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine — aiding and abetting; one count of possession with the intent to distribute cocaine hydrochloride — aiding and abetting; one count of possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl — aiding and abetting; one count of use and carry a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime; and one count of accessory after the fact to distribution of fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury or death.
Federal and state investigators found that the leader of the drug ring — Terrick Robinson — "distributed" the fentanyl to Dubois. That drug, according to her autopsy, was determined to be an independent sufficient cause of Dubois' death. In October 2020, a federal judge sentenced Robinson to life plus 10 years for drug distribution resulting in death and multiple other charges.
"This horrific and heinous crime is more than just a drug trafficking case. Banks and his co-conspirators not only preyed on our neighbors with the drugs they were selling, they allowed a young woman to die and disposed of her without any regard or respect for her life. While this outcome won't bring Courtney back, we hope it will give her family some peace as justice has prevailed," said Acting U.S. Attorney Randolph J. Bernard.
During Robinson's trial, agents testified that Robinson trafficked and distributed more than 4.5 kilograms of methamphetamine, as well as cocaine hydrochloride and fentanyl, in Marion County and elsewhere from May 2018 to September 2018, almost a year prior to Dubois' death.
A third man, William Gregory Chappell was sentenced to 168 months in federal prison in November 2021 on charges of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute and distribute controlled substances and one count of use and carry of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime.
According to court documents, an undercover agent who was investigating the case found that Chappell "performed security" for "T," the nickname by which Terrick Robinson was known. The two men operated out of rented rooms at the Fairfield Inn in White Hall, the Best Western Hotel in Bridgeport and a Days Inn in Jane Lew.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Kleeh sentenced Joel "Carlos" Jimenez to 65 months in federal prison in August 2021 for his role in the drug distribution operation.
In November 2019, Jimenez pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute and distribute controlled substances. Jimenez admitted to working with others to distribute drugs in North Central West Virginia.
Investigators with the Greater Harrison Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration the Three Rivers Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force, West Virginia State Police, the Bartow County, Georgia, Sheriff's Office the FBI in Rome, Georgia and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation investigated the case.
Reach Eric Cravey at 304-367-2523.
