 "Photo: Jonathan Austin for News-Record & Sentinel")
 "Photo: The Hilltop")
In the past 10 months, three Mars Hill College football players have been arrested for selling drugs.
Zachery Clyde Johnson, a 22-year-old student, was arrested on Feb. 18 by the Madison County Sheriff’s Department. He was a football player and a member of the Zeta Chi Theta fraternity on the MHC campus.
Johnson, a linebacker for the Lions, was jailed with two counts of trafficking a class II drug known as Oxycodone.
A native of Boone, N.C, Johnson was a full-time student at Mars Hill College and active football player.
Crossing state lines, the drug was moved from Palm Beach, Fla., to North Carolina, where the pills were sold to Johnson, according to the News-Record & Sentinel, the weekly paper in Marshall.
A student from A-B Tech community college was also arrested with Johnson.
“The quantities were enough to qualify the charges of trafficking,” Sheriff Buddy Harwood told the News-Record & Sentinel.
Johnson was held in custody for a little more than four hours, according to the newspaper. He was released on $20,000 bond. His court date is April 9.
Last spring, twin brothers on the MHC football team were also arrested for selling drugs.
Jordan Russell Elkins and Dustin Garrett Elkins, both 21, of Weaverville played football for Madison County High school and North Buncombe County High school before going on to Mars Hill to play.
Jordan Elkins was not listed on the MHC football season participation report for 2008. Dustin Elkins was only listed as playing in one game. Jordan was a Hilltop staff member the same semester.
Former Madison County Sheriff John Ledford told the New-Record & Sentinel it was “probably the largest (drug) sweep we’ve done.”
Both brothers were arrested and then charged on May 7, 2009, the day after finals ended.
Jordan was charged with trafficking Oxycontin, maintaining a vehicle used for selling the drugs, and possession with intent to distribute and manufacture Oxycontin.
Dustin was charged with trafficking Oxycontin, selling and delivering Lortab, and possession with intent of manufacturing dangerous substances.
Jordan is currently serving a sentence of up to one year and four months in Duplin Correctional Center of Kenansville, N.C., north of Wilmington.
His brother, Dustin, is serving a sentence of the same duration in Piedmont Correctional Institution of Salisbury County, N.C., between Greensboro and Charlotte.
See video of a tour of the Madison County Jail on the MHC YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/hilltopmhc.
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