Fayetteville Drug Trafficker Receives 7½ Years in Federal Prison

 GREENVILLE, N.C. – Miguel Marquis Hutchinson, 35, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, was sentenced yesterday to 90 months in prison for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. 

According to court records, evidence presented in court and other court documents, on February 3, 2019, Hutchinson, during an encounter with Fayetteville police officers, gave a false name to the officers and made a suspicious movement with his arm as he exited the car. 

During the encounter at the car, officers smelled the odor of marijuana and conducted a search of the car which resulted in locating 19.33 grams of marijuana inside the center console, baggies, and a digital scale.  A loaded 9mm Taurus pistol was also located positioned and ready for use under the driver’s seat on the right side pinned against the center console. 

Ten months later, while on state pre-trial release for this offense, Hutchinson was a passenger in a vehicle occupied by two others and was stopped for speeding on Fort Bragg.  Military Police Officers located 3 firearms in the vehicle including an AK-47 assault rifle with an extended magazine and over $16,000 in cash at Hutchinson’s feet.   

Hutchinson was previously convicted of second-degree murder in North Carolina state court in 2006 in Cumberland County, North Carolina and had just been released from custody two years prior. 

G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Terrence W. Boyle. Homeland Security Investigations, the Fayetteville Police Department and the Fort Bragg Military Police Traffic Unit investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Gabriel J. Diaz prosecuted the case.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No.5:19-CR-523-BO.