WELLSBURG, W.Va. — A Brooke County man has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to a felony drug charge stemming from a January investigation at a Follansbee home.

Brooke County Prosecuting Attorney Allison Adyniec Cowden said Rian Harkins, 25, was sentenced July 13 by Brooke County Circuit Judge Jason A. Cuomo to serve one to 15 years in the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Harkins pleaded guilty April 20 to one count of possession with intent to deliver methamphetamine.

The case began Jan. 4 when Brooke County Sheriff’s Deputy Shane Siranovic responded to a reported overdose at a home on Fourth Street in Follansbee.

Prosecutors said Siranovic found Harkins unresponsive behind a table in the basement of the home. After attempts to wake him, including a sternum rub, Harkins regained consciousness and told deputies he was fine.

While inside the home, deputies reported seeing suspected drugs and drug paraphernalia in plain view. Authorities secured the home while Siranovic obtained a search warrant from Brooke County Magistrate Court.

During the search, deputies recovered digital scales, small plates containing a white substance that field-tested positive for cocaine or cocaine base, plastic bags containing suspected narcotics, and other items investigators said were consistent with packaging and distributing controlled substances.

Investigators also found several containers holding a liquid with a white, grainy substance, along with an ice cube tray containing similar material and a box of baking soda. Prosecutors said laboratory testing later confirmed the liquid contained fentanyl.

Authorities also recovered several firearms from the home. One, a Smith & Wesson Bodyguard .380-caliber handgun, was determined through the National Crime Information Center database to have been reported stolen from Wheeling, prosecutors said.

Harkins remains in the custody of the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

West Virginia Wesleyan College will continue to inspire the state’s next generation of artists after being selected to host the West Virginia Governor’s School for the Arts for another three-year cycle, extending the partnership through 2030.

The college first hosted the Governor’s School for the Arts from 2014 to 2016, and the program returned in 2024 for a three-year cycle. The announcement marks a continued partnership between the college and one of the state’s premier educational enrichment programs for talented young artists.

West Virginia Wesleyan College President James Moore, the college’s 20th president, came to the college in 2006 as director of jazz ensembles, where he built one of the most vibrant collegiate jazz programs in the region. Today, that jazz program is under the direction of Adam Loudin ’07, who studied under Moore and is continuing the tradition.

Moore said, “We are thrilled and honored that we have been trusted with another three years of this amazing program. This College has always been one that’s valued the arts, and it’s what brought me here in 2006 as a young faculty member. We see the value in these students and know that they need to be supported by an institution that understands that the contributions of artists are among the most valuable to society. West Virginia Wesleyan College is most certainly that place.”

A transformative, free-of-charge program, the Governor’s School for the Arts invites current sophomores interested in expanding their artistic talents and experiences in digital art/media, creative writing, dance, instrumental music, studio art, theatre arts and vocal music to apply. The state of West Virginia covers the costs of the program.

The announcement comes at a time when West Virginia Wesleyan College continues to demonstrate its strong commitment to the creative and performing arts. This fall, the college will welcome approximately 60 students in creative and performing arts, including several who attended the Governor’s School for the Arts in 2024. Overall, the college has welcomed more than 160 creative artists across the last three incoming cohorts, and 11% of students study creative arts.

Sophomores can apply at the West Virginia Governor’s Schools website once applications open in the 2026-2027 academic year.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s Secretary of State maintains that elections in the Mountain State are secure after voter information corruption claims by President Donald Trump.

Secretary of State Kris Warner joined MetroNews “Talkline” Friday to unpack claims by President Trump that voter information for over 200 million Americans had been compromised by China, starting in the 2020 election. Trump addressed the nation Thursday night and said 18 states had experienced corruption by the Chinese government in regard to voter data.

“Our elections are safe, secure, fair, and honest,” Warner said. “We have 55 county clerks and about 8,500 poll workers that did a phenomenal job in the Primary Election, and we’re ready, less than four months away to conduct a general midterm election. So, there’s confidence in our elections and we’re very proud of that.”

Warner said his office has not heard from federal officials.

“I know the President mentioned 18 states, but West Virginia’s not been contacted by the White House, by anyone in the intelligence community; nobody from FBI, CIA, DNI (Director of National Intelligence), or any other federal agency alerting us to any real or existing threat for our upcoming election,” he said.

If the White House or other officials reach out to the Secretary of State’s office with “actionable intelligence,” Warner said the election division will investigate it. Warner praised his office, saying that other states consider West Virginia as a gold standard for election safety,

“People from all over the country look to us,” Warner said. “So, obviously, anything that comes our way that we can act on, we want to increase our election security even further. But until then, we’re going to stay the course.”

West Virginia’s elections are quite secure, Warner emphasized, because the state uses ballot-marking devices. He said that not only are ballots marked electronically, but those votes are also noted on paper.

“Every vote in West Virginia cast is backed up by a paper ballot,” Warner said. “You get to see that paper ballot and make sure that it is exactly who you intended to vote for.”

Because of this commitment to security, Warner said, the election officers in West Virginia will catch anything out of the ordinary. He said his office tracks previous elections and understands the typical numbers of who votes in each precinct. Additionally, he said that 10 days after the election, an audit occurs to confirm results through hand counting.

West Virginia has also been one of the states targeted by the U.S. Department of Justice over disclosure of voter information. A federal judge tossed out a DOJ lawsuit against West Virginia earlier this week over voter data.

Warner said Trump’s claim doesn’t change West Virginia’s stance on refusing to hand over voter information to the DOJ.

“West Virginia law says I’m not to share personal information — that’s social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, tied to birth dates, in some cases, cell phone numbers, email addresses, your home address,” Warner said. “Again, there would need to be actionable intelligence that is going to strengthen our election security before we do anything further.”

While he said he agrees with the mission — keeping people outside of the law from voting — but this isn’t the way to do it. Warner said voter information is personal, and it doesn’t need to be “floating around to vendors” in the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C.