A Lynchburg, Virginia man has been convicted on multiple charges by a federal jury, including possession with intent to distribute various illicit drugs and illegal firearm possession. According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Derrick O’Brian Hamlett, aged 32, was found guilty of trafficking heroin, fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, and 4-anilino-N-phenethylpiperidine (ANPP), as well as a firearm offense tied to his drug activities and another for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
The conviction stems from an incident on October 26, 2022, in Vance County, where the vehicle Hamlett rode as a passenger was stopped for a traffic violation. Law enforcement was soon to discover a backpack containing not just drugs, but also a stolen pistol and a loaded magazine—after detecting the smell of marijuana and locating a grinder in the vehicle. In the backpack, alongside the drugs, was Hamlett’s Virginia identification and other personal documents — irrefutable proof of ownership.
The U.S. Attorney's Office stated that "Derrick O’Brian Hamlett, 32, was a front seat passenger in a vehicle stopped for a traffic violation in Vance County on October 26, 2022. A Vance County detective noticed an odor of marijuana coming from the car and a marijuana grinder in between the front passenger seat and the center console." Upon his consent, they found the locked section of the backpack containing the contraband and firearm.
Now facing a mandatory minimum of five years and a statutory maximum of life imprisonment, Hamlett awaits sentencing. His criminal past as a convicted felon magnifies the gravity of the charges, strictly prohibiting him to even possess a firearm. The announcement of the conviction was made by Acting U.S. Attorney Daniel P. Bubar, after the verdict was accepted by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. This case has seen a joint investigative effort including the Vance County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the Sampson County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jermaine Sellers and David Beraka are recognized for their role in the prosecution.
