Man sentenced in Mason County death investigation

POINT PLEASANT , W.Va. (WSAZ) - A man convicted of killing a man and attempting to hide the body in the bed of a truck was sentenced to prison.

Anthony Yester, of Leon, was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter and concealment of a deceased human body in Nov. 2022.

The discovery was made along Gill Ridge Road on Oct. 28, 2021.

According to the Mason County Prosecutors office, Yester was sentenced to 21-25 years for charges of voluntary manslaughter, being a repeat offender and concealment of a body during a hearing on Feb. 6, 2023. He was sentenced to five years in prison for being a felon with a gun, which will run concurrently to the other charges.

According to court documents, members of a tree service noticed a truck parked under a power tower with a burn trail beside it. Upon further investigation, a volunteer firefighter working with the team discovered a man who appeared to be dead in the bed of the truck.

A criminal complaint states most of the man’s head was covered with a black trash bag and multiple bloody fingerprints were located on the tailgate of the truck.

On the driver side of the truck and continuing past the rear of the vehicle was a trail of burnt grass, officials say.

When the West Virginia State Police Crime Scene Unit arrived, they made the determination that the victim was not killed at the location, rather transported to the spot.

The victim was identified by the West Virginia State Medical Examiner’s Office as Paul Wesley Matheny, 41, formerly of Leon.

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