SC man had gun at traffic stop but what’s found at his home causes more trouble, cops say
A South Carolina man was found with a gun during a traffic stop on Interstate 26, the sheriff’s department reports, but what deputies say they uncovered at his Lexington County home could cause him much more trouble.
David Matthews, a 51-year-old West Columbia resident, was arrested on Jan. 29, according to the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department.
“Lexington County narcotics agents stopped Matthews on I-26 near (U.S. 321/Charleston Highway),” Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon said Tuesday in a news release. “Agents found a handgun in Matthews’ possession during the stop.”
There was no word why Matthews was stopped.
Matthews has a prior conviction that prohibits him from possessing a firearm, the sheriff’s department said.
“While executing a search warrant of his residence, there were over 28 grams of meth, over 28 grams of crack cocaine, over 28 grams of fentanyl, over 3,500 grams of marijuana, over $25,000 in U.S. currency and six firearms found inside the home,” Koon said. “One firearm was confirmed stolen from a neighboring jurisdiction.”
Matthews was charged with two counts of trafficking meth, in addition to single counts of trafficking cocaine, trafficking fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute marijuana, jail records show.
Matthews was also charged with six counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime and seven counts of possession of a firearm by a person convicted of possession with intent to distribute, according to the sheriff’s department.
Bond was set at a combined $140,000 on the weapons charges and the marijuana charge, jail records show. But Matthews remains locked up in the Lexington County Detention Center because he was denied bond on the drug trafficking charges, according to jail records.
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This story was originally published February 7, 2024 at 10:40 AM.
