20 inmates indicted on additional charges in Randolph County (2024)

by: Sam Kirk

Posted: Feb 27, 2024 / 11:44 AM EST

Updated: Feb 27, 2024 / 11:44 AM EST

ELKINS, W.Va. (WBOY) — Indictments were returned against 30 people during the February 2024 Randolph County Grand Jury, including a work crew member who escaped in September and 19 inmates at Tygart Valley Regional Jail and Huttonsville Correctional Center.

Denver Bennett, 31, who is currently being housed at the Mt Olive Correctional Complex in Fayette County, was indicted on one count of escape by persons in custody of institutions or officers. Bennett was on the run for nearly a week after escaping from a work crew in Elkins in September. He was apprehended in Upshur County on Sept. 21, and Beverly Beckner was charged with aiding his escape.

In addition to seven inmates who were indicted on drug possession charges, the following inmates were indicted on charges of possession with intent to deliver controlled substances, among other charges:

• Deandre Brown, 34, Tygart Valley – 4 counts
• Sylvester Lawrence, 29, Tygart Valley – 4 counts
• Shilyn Skubis, 36, Tygart Valley – 1 count
• Lindsey Studer, 52, Tygart Valley – 1 count
• Kevin Lease, 48, who is serving a sentence for sexual abuse by a parent at Huttonsville – 1 count

Tygart Valley inmate Stephen McDaniel, 33, was indicted on one count of transporting controlled substances onto the grounds of a correctional facility. Although not listed as an inmate, Marvin Pyle, 55, was also indicted on one count of transporting a controlled substance onto the grounds of a correctional facility and one count of delivery of a controlled substance.

The following inmates were indicted for malicious assault, among other charges:

• John Freet, 49, Tygart Valley – 2 counts
• Cody Moore, 36, who is serving a sentence for voluntary manslaughter and use of a firearm during a felony in Huttonsville – 1 count
• Joshua Greene, 39, who is serving a sentence for second degree murder in Huttonsville – 1 count
• Dakota Heckert, 25, who is serving a sentence for breaking and entering in Huttonsville – 1 count

Additionally, Tygart Valley inmate Eric Currence, 41, was indicted on two counts of attempted assault upon a government representative. Other inmates were indicted on felony charges for failure to register as a sex offender and grand larceny, among other charges.

Outside the corrections system, Jalissa Thompson, 34, was indicted on multiple crimes, including one count of child neglect creating risk of serious bodily injury and possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance. Thompson was arrested and charged in July 2023 alongside Deandre Brown and Sylvester Lawrence when drugs were found in the same hotel room as a 6-year-old girl.

Leon Eaton, 58, was indicted on two counts of wanton endangerment involving a firearm, among other charges. He was arrested in May 2023 after allegedly firing three shots during a dispute in Mill Creek, injuring two people. He was apprehended after a manhunt.

The full list of February indictments for Randolph County is available here.