EX-BASKETBALL STAR PLEADS GUILTY TO FELONY DRUG COUNTS

A former Charleston basketball standout pleaded guilty to trafficking cocaine in federal court on Friday, the U.S. Attorney's office said.

Jeramy L. Biles, 22, pleaded guilty to two felony counts of cocaine distribution and one felony count of possession with intent to distribute, Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Hahn said.

Biles, who was a two-time Class 3A first-team all-stater at Charleston, told the court that he was responsible for selling crack cocaine to a police informant on two occasions in 1999 and 2000 at his residence.

During a search by police of Biles' residence on March 10, officers found about 40 grams of crack cocaine in a kitchen drawer along with a digital scale.

A total of $840 was found in Biles' bedroom, including one of the $100 bills used to purchase cocaine that Biles had sold to an informant the day before.

Biles now faces a punishment of not less than five years and no more than 40 years in prison for each of the three counts. A fine of $2 million is also possible for each count.

He will be sentenced Sept. 12 before U.S. Circuit Judge Rodney W. Sippel.