District Attorney General Mark E. Davidson announced Friday the second phase of a joint federal, state and local law enforcement anti-violence initiative has resulted in the arrest and/or charging of 13 individuals in Tipton and Lauderdale Counties, TN. The agencies participating in the initiative include the District Attorney General’s Office for the 25th Judicial District, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee, the Tipton County Sheriff’s Office, the Covington Police Department, the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Office, the Ripley Police Department, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
On Feb. 20, law enforcement conducted supervised release compliance checks and targeted offenders wanted on arrest warrants for criminal offenses in Tipton and Lauderdale counties. The following arrests and/or charges were made:
Devontez Hurdle was arrested in Covington and charged with two counts of being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Possession of a Firearm in the Commission of a Dangerous Felony, Possession of Schedule II Cocaine with Intent to Deliver, Possession of Schedule VI Marijuana with Intent to Deliver, Theft of Property and Violation of Probation. A Springfield .45 ACP handgun, a stolen Charter Arms .38 special, approximately 82 grams of marijuana, 16.6 grams of cocaine, $1,311 in US currency and a 2004 Chevrolet Tahoe were seized during the arrest.
Michael Young was arrested in Covington and charged with Possession of Schedule II Cocaine with Intent to Deliver, Possession of Schedule VI Marijuana with Intent to Deliver, Child Endangerment, three (3) active warrants for Failure to Pay Child Support and a Violation of Probation. Approximately 44.6 grams of Marijuana and 9.3 grams of Ecstasy were seized during the arrest.
Shontaia Brown was arrested in Covington and charged with Possession of Schedule II Cocaine with Intent to Deliver, Possession of Schedule VI Marijuana with Intent to Deliver, Child Endangerment and Filing a False Report. Approximately 44.6 grams of Marijuana and 9.3 grams of Ecstasy were seized during the arrest.
Detayus Mason was arrested in Covington and charged with Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, Simple Possession of Marijuana and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. An American .223 handgun and approximately 8.5 grams of Marijuana were seized during the arrest.
Demarius Mitchell was arrested in Covington and charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Violation of Probation. A Taurus .380 handgun was seized during the arrest.
Jodeci Young and Javonte Poe were arrested in Covington. Poe was charged with Possession of Schedule VI Marijuana with Intent to Deliver, Tampering with Evidence and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Young was charged with Tampering with Evidence and a traffic offense. $2500 cash was seized in the arrest.
John Mason was arrested in Covington and charged with Violation of Probation.
Octavis Bady was arrested in Covington and charged with Violation of Probation.
Jasmine Carruthers was arrested in Covington and charged with Violation of Probation.
Maurizio Maurice Taylor was arrested in Ripley and charged with being a Felon in Possession of a Weapon. A .357 Interarms firearm was seized during the arrest.
Antravious Plummer was charged in Ripley with Possession of Schedule VI Marijuana with Intent to Deliver. Approximately 62 grams of Marijuana and drug paraphernalia was seized. Plummer fled from law enforcement and is still at large.
Nick Fulton Jr. was arrested in Ripley and charged with Criminal Simulation. Approximately $900 in counterfeit bills was seized.
In May 2019, nearly two dozen people were arrested in the first round of the operation, which resulted from a night of violence a year ago this week. Six of those men were also charged federally.
Davidson said, “We are pleased to work with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to conduct compliance checks of offenders on supervised release and those with outstanding arrest warrants. These cases will impact Public Safety in our rural communities, and we are glad to support this successful joint operation by aggressively prosecuting these offenders in State court and working with our federal partners for aggressive federal prosecution where applicable. We want to send this message: If you are a convicted criminal on supervised release in our communities, obey the rules of supervised release and the law or face the consequences. If you are wanted on outstanding warrants, we will find you and prosecute you. This will be an ongoing operation, and rest assured we will continue our focus on the drivers of violent crime in our communities: guns, gangs, and drugs.”
Tipton County Sheriff J.T. “Pancho” Chumley said, “We are committed to working with our local, state and federal partners to both keep our communities safe and hold offenders accountable. Offenders on probation and parole have been given an opportunity, a second chance in lieu of serving time in jail, to demonstrate they are willing to abide by the laws of our society and the terms of their release. It is our job to make sure they hold up their end of the agreement. These individuals clearly do not value that second chance and will now bear the consequences of their poor decisions.”
“We at the Covington Police Department are continually committed to getting the gangs, guns, and drugs off our streets. It is our mission to make our neighborhoods safer and give our citizens, business owners, and visitors a greater sense of security. We are always grateful to partner with our colleagues on the federal, state, and local level to help us further our cause. It takes all hands on deck at all times, and we are and will be relentless. This kind of collaboration is welcomed and makes an impactful difference,” said Covington Police Chief Larry Lindsey.
“This operation was a good success and was very beneficial to our community” said Lauderdale County Sheriff Steve Sanders.
The charges and allegations contained in these cases are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty.
Assistant District Attorneys Julie Pillow, Joni Glenn, Jason Poyner, Walt Freeland, Erik Haas, Stephanie Draughon, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Hord will be prosecuting these cases on behalf of the government.
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