A former supervisor at the Southern Regional Jail in Beaver, West Virginia, has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for his involvement in covering up the fatal assault of a 35-year-old inmate, Quantez Burks. This sentence was handed down to Chad Lester, a former lieutenant, who was convicted by a federal jury in January on three counts of felony obstruction, which included witness tampering, conspiracy to tamper with witnesses, and providing false statements. These charges stemmed from an incident three years ago when correctional officers allegedly assaulted Burks, leading to his death.
Lester’s actions to conceal the assault were multifaceted. He reportedly threatened subordinate officers with violence and retaliation if they did not comply with his demands. Furthermore, he was found to have added false statements to multiple officers’ reports regarding the incident and instructed officers on crafting a false narrative for investigators. Lester also gave his own false account of events to authorities, attempting to derail the investigation.
The case involved several other officers who have also faced legal proceedings. Seven officers pleaded guilty and provided testimony against Lester during his trial. Among these, officers Mark Holdren, Corey Snyder, and Johnathan Walters admitted to conspiring to use unreasonable force that resulted in Burks’s death. Additionally, Ashley Toney and Jacob Boothe acknowledged violating Burks’s civil rights by failing to intervene during the assault, while Steven Wimmer and Andrew Fleshman confessed to conspiring to use unreasonable force.
Lester’s sentencing is part of broader legal actions against the involved officers, with Wimmer being the only other officer sentenced as of Thursday. Sentencing hearings for five of the remaining officers are slated for next month, while Fleshman’s hearing is scheduled for July.
Acting US Attorney for the Southern District of Virginia, Lisa Johnston, highlighted the gravity of the situation, stating, “On the defendant’s watch, correctional officers killed an inmate, and the defendant conspired with them to cover up their crimes… The defendant violated the public’s trust in the law enforcement system he had sworn to uphold.” The FBI field office in Pittsburgh spearheaded the investigation into this case.
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