Jeff Allen Parsons, a 28-year-old resident of Genoa, has pleaded guilty to unlawful destruction of timber and received a 90-day incarceration sentence. He is also required to pay $1,465.29 in restitution.
Court documents reveal that on November 8, 2023, Parsons, along with co-defendants Ronald Lee Frye and Eugene Luther Cochran, entered public land near East Lynn with the intent to illegally cut and remove trees. Parsons admitted his involvement in cutting down the trees and breaking open a metal gate to move their truck closer to one of the felled trees.
The group attempted to leave the area after being spotted by employees of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Charges against Frye, aged 33 from Wayne, and Cochran, aged 36 from Genoa, are still pending. Both individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston announced the sentencing and praised the investigative efforts of the United States Army Corps of Engineers' Huntington District and the West Virginia Division of Forestry.
United States Magistrate Judge Joseph K. Reeder oversaw the hearing. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Erik S. Goes alongside former Assistant United States Attorney Owen Reynolds.
Further details about this case can be accessed through PACER by searching for Case No. 3:24-cr-161 on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.