Xzavier Tylon Morris, Fentanyl and Firearm Possession, North Carolina 2023

Table of Contents

Xzavier Tylon Morris Sentenced to 24 Years for Fentanyl and Firearm Possession

A Havelock man was sentenced to 295 months in prison for possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Xzavier Tylon Morris, 27, pled guilty to the charges on October 18, 2023.

The Craven County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) stopped Morris on February 1, 2022, to serve him with outstanding warrants for breaking and entering. During the traffic stop, deputies observed Morris and his passenger throw a bag out the window of their vehicle. The bag was recovered, and its contents were determined to be fentanyl. Morris was arrested for trafficking fentanyl and placed in the Craven County Detention Center.

CCSO detectives began to monitor Morris’ outgoing jail calls and discovered that he was directing co-defendants Kimberly Smith and Kayakenee Oliver to move a safe containing drugs to Oliver’s residence in Havelock. In these recorded calls, Morris, Smith, and Oliver conspired to package the drugs for re-sale to a third party in order to try to raise bond money for Morris.

CCSO detectives were able to secure a search warrant for Oliver’s residence and executed it just after midnight on February 3, 2022. During the search, detectives located a safe containing 139 grams of cocaine, 62 grams of fentanyl, 617 grams of methamphetamine, two 9mm pistols, and a digital scale.

Morris, a validated 9-3 Bloods gang member, was later interviewed and admitted that the guns and firearms in the safe belonged to him and that he had been instructing Oliver and Smith how to package the drugs for sale.

Michael Easley, Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan. The Craven County Sheriff’s Office and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Caroline Webb prosecuted the case.

Mandatory Facts:

Defendant: Xzavier Tylon Morris
Criminal Charges: Possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime
City and State: Havelock, North Carolina
Exact Date: February 1, 2022 (arrest), October 18, 2023 (sentencing)
Sentence: 295 months in prison