Grimy Times has learned that former Biloxi City Councilman Robert Leon Deming III has been sentenced to 72 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a Schedule I controlled substance.
According to court documents, Deming, 47, founded the Candy Shop, LLC to operate Candy Shop stores in Mississippi and North Carolina. The stores sold CBD and vape products.
However, an investigation by the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the Drug Enforcement Administration revealed that some of the vape products sold by the Candy Shops in Mississippi contained Schedule I controlled substances and controlled substance analogues.
Agents seized over $1.8 million in cash from Deming’s residence and additional cash and controlled substances from his stores. During the investigation, it was discovered that Deming was aware that his vape additives did not contain CBD; rather, they contained synthetic cannabinoids.
Deming misbranded the additives as containing CBD, despite complaints from his employees about the products being too strong and potentially harming customers. In May 2022, Deming sent an uncharged coconspirator $2,200 to purchase 1 kilogram of 5F-AB-PINACA, a Schedule I controlled substance, for use in the Candy Shop’s vape additives.
Deming’s gross sales of vape additive products containing either Schedule I controlled substances or their analogues totaled over $2 million. He was indicted by a federal grand jury on September 19, 2023, and pled guilty on May 1, 2024.
As part of the resolution in this case, Deming agreed to forfeit a yellow Monster Truck with oversized tires and a lift kit and over $1.9 million dollars. U.S. consumers are put at risk when labeling is false and misleading, said Special Agent in Charge Justin Fielder, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, Miami Field Office.
Related Federal Cases
- Eight Charged in Galveston Drug Trafficking Conspiracy · Mississippi
- Biloxi Councilman Pleads Guilty to Vape Shop Drug Conspiracy · Mississippi
- Ruel M Hamilton, Texas Drug Trafficking, Dallas TX, 2019 · Mississippi
- Landry Pushes Drug Courts to Fight Opioid Crisis · Mississippi
- Jorge Narvaez, Drone Smuggling, Casper WY, 2023 · North Carolina
Key Facts
- State: Mississippi
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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