{"id":8710449,"date":"2023-01-09T16:18:33","date_gmt":"2023-01-10T00:18:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/?p=8710449&preview=true&preview_id=8710449"},"modified":"2023-01-10T10:43:22","modified_gmt":"2023-01-10T18:43:22","slug":"feds-pittsburg-man-drove-into-a-ditch-in-front-of-a-cop-while-possessing-a-pound-of-meth-then-insisted-he-was-planning-to-smoke-it-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/2023\/01\/09\/feds-pittsburg-man-drove-into-a-ditch-in-front-of-a-cop-while-possessing-a-pound-of-meth-then-insisted-he-was-planning-to-smoke-it-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Feds: Pittsburg man drove into a ditch in front of a cop while possessing a pound of meth, then insisted he was planning to \u2018smoke it all\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

OAKLAND \u2014 A Pittsburg man has been charged in federal court with possessing methamphetamine for sale, despite his insistence that the pound allegedly found in his car was intended for personal consumption only.<\/p>\n

Levar Gaulding, 44, was charged with possession with intent to distribute at least 500 grams of methamphetamine, a federal offense that qualifies for a mandatory minimum five-year prison term and a maximum of four decades behind bars. He is next due in court Feb. 1, where a federal magistrate will determine whether to grant a prosecution request to hold him without bail while the case is pending.<\/p>\n

The charges stem from an incident on Jan. 11, 2022, when Gaulding allegedly made a series of unforced errors that landed him in the back of a police car. It all started when two Contra Costa Sheriff\u2019s deputies on patrol in Pittsburg sat in their patrol car and watched Gaulding drive a vehicle over a sidewalk and into a drainage ditch, according to the criminal complaint.<\/p>\n

After realizing he was stuck, Gaulding exited the car, apparently noticed the deputies, then lifted his shirt to prove he was unarmed while simultaneously admitting possessing of a \u201ccrank pipe,\u201d the complaint alleges. A second officer looked into the driver\u2019s seat and noticed a \u201cshard\u201d of methamphetamine in \u201cfull view,\u201d the complaint says.<\/p>\n