ROCKINGHAM — A South Carolina man with an outstanding domestic violence warrant from Mecklenburg County is now facing drug charges in Richmond County.
According to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, deputies received a Flock notification regarding a vehicle reported stolen in Charlotte passing by on Airport Road.Investigators say the vehicle is registered in South Carolina.
A deputy on Broad Avenue reportedly spotted the vehicle at the Chic-Fil-A in Rockingham. When the occupants returned to the vehicle, they were reportedly blocked in by law enforcement and ordered to get out.
Deputies searched the vehicle and reportedly found: 10 grams of suspected marijuana in the console; 185 grams of suspected marijuana and a set of scales in a backpack; and 3 grams of suspected marijuana and three cigars in a cigar pack.
During the investigation, deputies contacted the registered owner of the vehicle and discovered that it wasn’t actually stolen but an unauthorized use.
The driver, 23-year-old Jalyn Melton, of Cheraw, South Carolina, was cited for simple possession of a Schedule VI controlled substance and is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 29.
The passenger, 27-year-old Zyrel Tykee Purvis, also of Cheraw, was charged with possession with intent to manufacture, sell or deliver marijuana and possession of marijuana paraphernalia.
Purvis was also arrested on an outstanding warrant out of Mecklenburg County, where he is charged with assault on a female and misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. Court records show that warrant was issued July 5.
Purvis was booked into the Richmond County Jail where he is being held on a combined $25,000 secured bond. He is scheduled to appear in court Nov. 5 on the drug charges and Nov. 3 on the domestic violence charges.
South Carolina court records show Purvis is facing pending charges of manufacturing or possession of other substances in Schedule I, Schedule II or Schedule III, and possession of an ounce or less of marijuana in Chesterfield County from earlier in the year. He also has several pending cases of driving under suspension.
Purvis also has a charge of public disorderly conduct in Marlboro County. The status for that case is listed as rescheduled/trial in absentia.
Melton was convicted in 2024 on two counts of pointing and presenting firearms at person — one originally filed as first-degree domestic violence — in Chesterfield County.
All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
