Chuck Mordecai Cumberland, Methamphetamine Trafficking, Mississippi 2017

Gulfport Man Sentenced for Methamphetamine Trafficking

Gulfport, MS – In a move aimed at curbing the growing methamphetamine problem in the Gulf Coast region, a local gang member has been sentenced to 39 months in federal prison for his involvement in the illicit trade.

Chuck Mordecai Cumberland, a 31-year-old resident of Waveland, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden on [no date specified] to 39 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years supervised release, for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Cumberland was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine. The sentence will run consecutive to Cumberland’s current sentence for which he is now in prison on an unrelated state conviction.

According to court documents, Cumberland pled guilty on February 23, 2018. His troubles with the law began on July 27, 2016, when Waveland police officers arrested him as a felon-in-possession of three handguns and related ammunition. Police also seized less than one ounce of marijuana, a paraphernalia pipe, and three pills of prescription pain killers for which Cumberland did not have a prescription.

Cumberland had been convicted of Felony Driving Under the Influence (DUI) by the Hancock County Circuit Court in February 2016. He had been on state supervision after serving a prison sentence for Felony DUI. After his arrest for being a felon in possession of a firearm, his state supervision was revoked and he was returned to state prison.

Less than a year later, on January 26, 2017, after Cumberland’s release from the Mississippi Department of Corrections, Harrison County Sheriff’s Department deputies arrested him in the Saucier Community during an attempted narcotics transaction. Cumberland attempted to flee and, when caught by deputies, he was found with a loaded .38 caliber revolver, three plastic baggies of methamphetamine and a digital scale on his person. A fourth baggie of methamphetamine had fallen to the ground next to the vehicle Cumberland had been using. The Mississippi State Crime Lab determined that the four baggies contained a total weight of approximately 2.9 grams of methamphetamine.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Waveland Police Department and the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stan Harris.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdms/pr/gang-member-sentenced-methamphetamine-and-illegally-possessing-firearm