Wilmington man convicted on drug charges loses appeal

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - A Wilmington man sentenced to more than four years in prison on drug charges lost his appeal Tuesday.

Gerald Jacobs II contended that his motion to suppress evidence in his 2022 trial was wrongfully denied.

Jacobs was arrested on March 29, 2019 after a traffic stop. A Wilmington police officer said he stopped Jacobs because he could smell unburnt marijuana emanating from the vehicle.

During a search of the vehicle, officers found “heroin, a MDMA tablet, powder cocaine, crack cocaine, and approximately sixteen grams of marijuana.”

The marijuana was found in the center console of the car, wrapped in 12 separate bags.

In his appeal, Jacobs argued that “the officer did not witness a traffic violation, and his claims of smelling unburnt marijuana emanating from Defendant’s vehicle were ‘inherently incredible.’

The N.C. Court of Appeals ruled that Jacobs failed to show that the officer lacked reasonable suspicion to initiate the traffic stop.

“Accordingly, the trial court did not commit reversible error in denying Defendant’s motion to suppress evidence obtained from the stop,” the ruling states.

Jacobs was convicted of one count of trafficking in cocaine by transportation, one count of possession with intent to sell and deliver heroin and one count of possession with intent to sell and deliver MDMA. He was sentenced to 52-90 months in prison and given a $50,000 fine.

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