BOWLING GREEN, KY – Steven Phelps, 41, is headed to federal prison for 15 years after being convicted of trafficking methamphetamine and illegally possessing a firearm. Phelps was sentenced Monday, January 29, 2024, in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky, bringing an end to a case that exposed a significant drug operation in Warren County.
According to court documents, Phelps possessed with intent to distribute a staggering 2,433 grams – over 5 pounds – of methamphetamine on August 3, 2022. He wasn’t just holding the drugs; he actively participated in the distribution, handing off 8.734 grams to another individual for resale. Adding to the severity of the charges, Phelps was found to be in possession of a nine-millimeter handgun despite a lengthy criminal record that explicitly prohibited him from owning firearms.
This wasn’t Phelps’ first rodeo with the law. Court records show a pattern of drug-related offenses. In 2015, he was convicted of trafficking in a controlled substance, first degree, in Edmonson Circuit Court. Before that, in 2011, he was convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine, also in Edmonson County. And even further back, in 2004, a Warren Circuit Court conviction landed him in trouble for possession of a controlled substance. These prior convictions made the firearm charge particularly damning.
The investigation, a collaborative effort between the ATF Bowling Green Field Office and the Bowling Green/Warren County Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (AHIDTA) Drug Task Force, paints a picture of a hardened criminal repeatedly engaging in illegal activity. The ATF’s Special Agent in Charge, R. Shawn Morrow, and AHIDTA Director Tommy Loving, jointly announced the sentencing alongside U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark J. Yurchisin II, prosecuting the case from the Bowling Green Branch Office, secured the 15-year sentence, followed by five years of supervised release. There’s no parole in the federal system, meaning Phelps will serve the full term. The case is being touted as a victory for Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a Department of Justice initiative aimed at reducing violent crime and gun violence.
While officials celebrate the conviction, the reality is Phelps’ sentence is just one battle won in the ongoing war against drug trafficking in Kentucky. The sheer volume of methamphetamine involved – over 2 kilograms – suggests a network far larger than a single individual. The Grimy Times will continue to follow this story and investigate the broader implications of drug trafficking in the region.
Related Federal Cases
- Christopher Mattingly, Marijuana and Meth Trafficking, KY 2015 · California
- Jessica Acosta, Meth Trafficking, KY 2018 · California
- Tyrone D. Trumbo Jr., Alleged Drug Trafficking, Kentucky, 2023 · Kentucky
- Richard Alexander Murdaugh, Drug Trafficking, Charleston SC, 2023 · Alabama
- Donte Booker, Cocaine Trafficking and Robbery, Cleveland OH, 2023 · Ohio
Key Facts
- Agency: ATF
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Weapons|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Press Release
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