FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
TUESDAY - July 7, 2009
LUMBERTON FELON PLEADS GUILTY TO DRUG AND GUN CHARGES
RALEIGH - United States Attorney George E.B. Holding announced that in federal court yesterday JAMAR LEON PRESSEY, 26, of Lumberton, North Carolina, pled guilty before United States Magistrate Judge David W. Daniel to a Superseding Criminal Information, which charged conspiring to distribute a quantity of cocaine powder, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, which carries maximum penalties of up to 20 years imprisonment followed by up to five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1,000,000, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(1), which carries maximum penalties of up to 10 years imprisonment followed by up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
On July 13, 2007, law enforcement responded to the Watauga Street area in Lumberton due to complaints of illegal activities. Upon arrival, officers saw PRESSEY and several individuals gathered on and along the street where the officers could see open alcohol containers and could smell the odor of burned marijuana. Officers initiated an encounter and stated their intention to conduct a pat down of the individuals. As officers began the pat down, PRESSEY ran from the scene. Officers chased the defendant and directed him to stop; however, he did not comply. When officers finally caught PRESSEY, they found inside his waistband, a .45 caliber handgun.
PRESSEY’s previous felonious convictions include robbery and kidnapping.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) which encourages federal, state, and local agencies to cooperate in a unified “team effort” against gun crime, targeting repeat offenders who continually plague their communities.
Investigation of the case was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; and the Lumberton Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney William Gilmore served as prosecutor for the government.
News releases are available on the U. S. Attorney’s web page at www.usdoj.gov/usao/nce within 48 hours of release.
