On April 4th, 2018, Monuel Nicodemus Johnson, 40 years old, was convicted of felony possession of a firearm by a felon, felony possession of a stolen vehicle, six counts of felony breaking or entering a motor vehicle, and two counts of felony breaking or entering. All of these convictions stemmed from a series of thefts from homes and vehicles in January of 2017 across Avery, Mitchell, and Yancey Counties. Additionally, on February 7th, 2018, a Mitchell County jury convicted Mr. Johnson of felony delivery of a schedule II controlled substance, felony possession with intent to sell or deliver a schedule II controlled substance, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Mr. Johnson’s drug convictions were based on an undercover operation by the Mitchell County Sheriff’s Office that caught Mr. Johnson’s delivering methamphetamine. At an early stage of the prosecution, Mr. Johnson was identified as a habitual felon by the District Attorney’s Office, thereby enhancing his sentence.
In total, Superior Court Judge Alan Z. Thornburg sentenced Mr. Johnson to prison for a minimum of 15 years and 8 months and a maximum of 19 years and 10 months.
“My office continues to focus on the prosecution of those who continually terrorize our community,” District Attorney Seth Banks said in a statement. “By identifying Mr. Johnson as a habitual felon, we were able to take another repeat offender off the streets. I would like to thank Assistant District Attorney Milton Fletcher, the Avery County Sheriff’s Office, the Mitchell County Sheriff’s Office, and the Yancey County Sheriff’s Office for working together to keep the people of the 24th Judicial District safe.”
