U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. sentenced a methamphetamine dealer to over 15 years (188 months) in prison on Wednesday.
Marcus M. Nelson, 42, of Cairo, Illinois, pleaded guilty in March in U.S. District Court in Cape Girardeau to two counts of distributing methamphetamine. Nelson admitted to selling meth on two occasions to a confidential informant who had informed Drug Enforcement Administration agents about previous purchases of multiple ounces of meth from him.
On July 10, 2023, Nelson sold 157 grams of meth for $1,600 to the informant at a home in Cape Girardeau. On July 16, 2023, he sold 446 grams, or nearly one pound, of meth for a downpayment of $2,500 and a later payment of $700 more.
Nelson’s 188-month sentence will run consecutive to any prison sentence he receives for violating his parole on a robbery conviction. Nelson was previously sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison after a 2001 conviction for conspiracy to distribute and distribution of cocaine base in the Southern District of Illinois.
The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Willis prosecuted the case.
