ROCKINGHAM — A man released two months ago is back behind bars on drug charges.
According to online records, 26-year-old Stephon Jewlton Easterling, of Hamlet, was booked into the Richmond County Jail at 5:13 p.m. Nov. 16 and faces the following charges: possession with intent to manufacture, sell or deliver a Schedule II controlled substance; possession of a Schedule II controlled substance; possession of up to a half ounce of marijuana; possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of marijuana paraphernalia.
He is being held under a $25,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 3.
Records show Easterling is also being held without bond on a parole violation.
According to the N.C. Department of Public Safety Division of Adult Correction, Easterling was released Sept. 17 after serving a week following conviction of larceny from the person and misdemeanor larceny. His parole was slated to end May 15, 2021.
Easterling was previously behind bars on a post-release revocation from September 2019 to June 2020 after serving time for breaking and entering vehicles and larceny from the person.
Records show Easterling was first convicted of misdemeanor breaking and entering and larceny in 2012.
In March 2016, he was convicted of obtaining property by false pretenses and possession of a controlled substance from crimes committed to years prior. In May, Easterling was convicted of breaking and entering, larceny and larceny after breaking and entering.
His probation on those charges was revoked in June and Easterling spent the next six months behind bars. During that time, he was also convicted of assault inflicting serious injury for an incident that occurred four days before he was locked up, records show.
He went back to prison twice on violations during 2017.
Easterling was allegedly involved in a riot at the jail in May while awaiting trial on charges from both the Hamlet and Rockingham police departments.
Available online records do not currently show anything related to those charges.
All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
