A Mercer County man was sentenced to serve time in prison after pleading guilty to drug charges in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh.

Eugene Phillips, 31, of Farrell, was sentenced to 60 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release after pleading guilty to charges of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine and conspiracy to launder drug trafficking proceeds, according to U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan.

Between March and June 2021, Phillips was detained at the Mercer County prison because of state crack cocaine trafficking charges. The charges were pending until April 27, 2021, when he was convicted and sentenced to serve 27 to 54 months in state prison. During that time period, both before to and after his state conviction and sentence, Phillips kept trafficking crack cocaine from the prison, Olshan said.

The FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, state police, Lawrence County Drug Task Force, Mercer County Drug Task Force, New Castle Police Department, Sharon Police Department, Hermitage Police Department and the Farrell Police Department led the investigation.