From left are defendants Terrick Robinson, Seddrick Banks, William Chappell and Joel Jimenez.

CLARKSBURG — A woman lay in a comatose-like state for hours in a motel room while three alleged drug dealers — with two cell phones each, as well as the room phone — never called 911, two of the alleged dealers testified.

The testimony by William Gregory Chappell 33, of Cartersville, Georgia, and Joel Macario Jimenez, 38, also of Cartersville, came Monday, the fifth day of trial for co-defendant Terrick Robinson, 35, also of Cartersville.

District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh is presiding.

Robinson is facing one count alleging he gave Courtney Nicole DuBois, 20, of Fairmont, the fentanyl that an autopsy alleges caused her death on Aug. 9, 2018. Robinson also is facing five other drug counts and two gun counts.

The body of DuBois was found cut into seven pieces, each placed in a different garbage bag, at a Georgia landfill site.

The commander of the Greater Harrison Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Traci Cook, allege Robinson was the leader of a drug conspiracy, was responsible for DuBois’s overdose death and then, along with half-brother and co-defendant Seddrick Damond Banks, 27, of Cartersville, worked to dispose of the body.

Banks is set for trial the week of March 23, also before federal jurors in Clarksburg and with Kleeh presiding.

Banks, who also has pleaded innocent, is facing four drug counts, a gun count and a count alleging he was an accessory after the fact to distribution of fentanyl resulting in serious injury or death.

The other two defendants in the case, Chappell and Jimenez, have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing by Kleeh. Each man admitted being part of a crystal meth distribution conspiracy that involved a pipeline from Georgia to West Virginia. Chappell also entered a plea to a gun charge.

Each could face 20 or more years in prison, although by entering guilty pleas, they have controlled what they can regarding the upper limit of their sentence — a big consideration in the federal system since parole isn’t an option.

Chappell and Jimenez also could see their potential sentence drop below 20 years if the government recommends them for it for providing substantial assistance.

Jimenez and Chappell said they had been recruited by Robinson to help out with drug dealing in West Virginia. Jimenez described his role as a middleman. Chappell described his as a wheelman and someone who provided muscle.

Chappell and Jimenez described DuBois overdosing sometime either late Aug. 9, 2018, or early Aug. 10, 2018, at a Jane Lew motel. She was likely dead by the next morning, Chappell and Jimenez agreed, though they differed on when and why they took off for Georgia, allegedly stranding Robinson at the room with the body.

Jimenez gave a particularly chilling reason: Robinson had ordered them to go “get a shovel, matches and a gas can.” But Chappell mentioned nothing like that.

Chappell, meanwhile, testified Robinson had put out a line of fentanyl-laced heroin for DuBois to snort at the hotel, causing her overdose. But later in August 2018, Jimenez had told a deputy in Georgia that Chappell had said he was the one who put out the lethal line of drugs for DuBois. During his testimony Monday, Jimenez said he wasn’t sure about that. But he allowed that his memory would have been better in 2018.

Jimenez also said Robinson later told him “they” had disposed of the body by cutting it up.

Defense attorneys Jim Zimarowski and Ed Rollo are sure to pounce on some of these inconsistencies during closing arguments.

But Jimenez and Chappell were consistent in saying the drugs were Robinsons, and that he was fully in command of the drug conspiracy.

Assistant U.S. attorneys Traci Cook and Brandon Flower then can counter that even if the jury wants to believe that Chappell put out the fentanyl-laced heroin for DuBois to snort, it was Robinson’s product. And they will also point to evidence that Robinson allegedly had been warned the fentanyl-laced heroin was extremely potent and had been causing overdoses.

The testimony by Chappell and Jimenez was depressing in that they both talked about how likable DuBois had been, yet no one was willing to call 911 on her behalf, not even after the drugs and money allegedly in the room had been removed that evening to another motel, in Flatwoods.

Chappell and Jimenez also discussed the amount of drugs being moved involved pounds of meth at a time, and the money they were paid by Robinson for their roles was around $1,000 a week, each.

Zimarowski and Rollo have suggested Banks was the leader of a triad involving Chappell and Jimenez, while Robinson was along as a sober baby-sitter, and to chase women.

Zimarowski pursued that theory again in cross-examination of Chappell.

He brought up what first came out in the government’s case, an allegation that Banks is a member of the Pirus Bloods. Zimarowski took it even further, suggesting Banks is a “shot caller” for the Pirus Bloods, and that jail tattoos that Chappell has added since his arrest are there to denote he will be protected from the Bloods by another gang.

Chappell disputed the latter, and indicated he didn’t know anything about the former.

Zimarowski also suggested as an addict, Chappell was the one who knew how to lay out a line of heroin, and that he in fact had done so. Chappell denied that, and also said he regretted not having called 911 or taking some other action that could have saved DuBois.

Zimarowski also underscored that Chappell’s profession had been as meat cutter, something the defense is sure to hit during its closing arguments.

Also Friday, a forensic anthropologist testified the bones of DuBois showed post-mortem cuts from a power saw at seven different parts of her body. She identified multiple areas that showed a back-to-front sawing action.

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