A Huntington man is headed to federal prison for nearly eight years after admitting to dealing fentanyl in the heart of West Virginia’s opioid crisis. Rodney Bulley, 33, was sentenced to seven years and six months for distributing 278 grams of the deadly synthetic opioid in 2019, a haul worth hundreds of thousands of dollars on the street.
On November 20, 2019, federal and local agents stormed Bulley’s residence on Wilson Court during a targeted raid backed by a search warrant. Inside, they found Bulley and a trove of narcotics evidence, including the near-third-kilo fentanyl stash. He didn’t fight the charges, instead confessing on the spot that he possessed the drugs with intent to distribute and had been active in the local fentanyl trade.
The bust was part of an ongoing crackdown on drug networks flooding Huntington—a city ravaged by overdose deaths—with lethal doses of fentanyl. Bulley’s arrest dealt a blow to one such supply chain, according to investigators who say even small quantities can fuel an epidemic. At 278 grams, his stash had the potential to kill thousands.
U.S. Attorney William S. Thompson announced the sentence today, praising the joint operation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cabell County Sheriff’s Department. “This is not just a prison term,” Thompson said. “It’s a public health intervention. Every kilo we intercept saves lives.”
The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Robert C. Chambers, who emphasized the destructive reach of fentanyl in communities like Huntington. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph F. Adams prosecuted the case, building it on Bulley’s own admissions and forensic evidence seized during the raid.
Court records, including the full indictment and sentencing memo, are available through PACER under Case No. 3:21-cr-00105. The case remains part of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia’s broader campaign to dismantle drug trafficking operations operating in the region.
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Key Facts
- State: West Virginia
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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