New details emerged at Monday's hearing for Dana Stevenson, a man believed to be connected to two area shootings and a gun recently found in the Kanawha River.
Stevenson, 26, pleaded not guilty to a seven-count indictment in U.S. District Court. He is accused of possessing and selling heroin and crack cocaine in the Charleston area between December 2016 and January 2017.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives tried to arrest Stevenson in March, said Sean McNees, an ATF special agent, as he answered questions from an assistant prosecutor.
McNees said he called Stevenson, who then promised to turn himself in the same day. However, investigators now believe Stevenson was in Maryland during the phone call.
Charleston police caught up with Stevenson last week as he drove an SUV in Charleston. He allegedly ran from the vehicle and traveled toward Kanawha Boulevard.
The SUV is registered in Ohio, McNees said, and authorities found several .40-caliber shell casings inside the vehicle.
Police have said the SUV may be connected to two shootings in North Charleston, near Grandview Elementary School. Neither resulted in injuries.
Officers again confronted Stevenson as he neared the Kanawha River. They ordered him to stop, but instead he allegedly threw a gun into the water, McNees said.
He said the officers eventually arrested Stevenson, and a dive team then recovered a .40-caliber Glock handgun from the water.
On Monday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Davis asked for Stevenson to remain under federal custody.
Attorney Andy Katz said Stevenson - a lifelong Charleston resident - should be granted bond.
"He literally would have no place to go," Katz said, arguing against the idea that Stevenson would leave town.
Katz acknowledged the pending allegations that Stevenson sold drugs and possessed an illegal handgun.
He then discounted the strength of evidence against Stevenson, arguing that he poses no real danger to the community.
Counts one through six in the indictment accuse him of selling drugs in Kanawha County - twice near Stonewall Jackson Middle School.
The seventh count says Stevenson possessed an illegal .40-caliber handgun.
Special Agent McNees said a confidential informant bought narcotics from Stevenson on several occasions.
Investigators recorded the money before each purchase. Eighty dollars in recorded money, he said, was later found during a search of Stevenson's bedroom.
McNees said authorities found mail addressed to Stevenson in the room.
"Also, clothing we have seen him wear before was found in that bedroom," he said.
Authorities also found a handgun in the room, along with crack cocaine inside a clothing rack outside the door, McNees said.
Addressing a question from Stevenson's attorney, McNees said no fingerprints were found on the gun.
A 2014 conviction for wanton endangerment prohibits Stevenson from possessing a handgun.
Stevenson had shot a man in the thigh and then run from police, according to a criminal complaint.
His sentence effectively began in May 2014, and officials released him on parole in August 2016
At Monday's arraignment hearing, Magistrate Judge Dwane Tinsley ordered Stevenson to remain under control of the U.S. Marshals Service.
"This court has been consistent in ruling that guns and drugs do not go together," Tinsley said.
Stevenson's trial is scheduled for Oct. 17 at 9 a.m. in Charleston.
He remained mostly silent during the hearing. As he left the courtroom, Stevenson smiled at a woman in the aisle.
"I love you," he said.
Reach Giuseppe Sabella at giuseppe.sabella@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-5189 or follow @Gsabella on Twitter.