Inmate pleads guilty to possessing fentanyl in Athens jail cell

By Joe Johnson

Kelsey Alexis Coleburn, 44, of Little River, S.C., has pleaded guilty to possessing fentanyl while an inmate at the county jail in Athens,

According to court records, jail personnel responded to Coleburn’s cell on December 22nd after she had passed out and they found that she had fentanyl in her bedding.

She was subsequently charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of a prohibited item by an inmate.

In a plea agreement reached on Tuesday Cokeburn pleaded guilty to the illegal item charge and the controlled substance charge was dismissed.

In accordance with the plea deal, a judge sentenced Coleburn to five years of supervised probation.

That sentence is to be served concurrently with her probation in another case that stemmed from her arrest by Athens police for identity theft and knowingly bringing a stolen car into the state from South Carolina.

Coleburn remains at the county jail, where a hold on her release was placed by the North Carolina Department of Corrections.