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Bridgeport Meth Dealer Sentenced To 10 Years In Federal Prison

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. -- A Bridgeport man was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison on Friday after he was charged last year for selling methamphetamine to undercover agents, according to Deirdre M. Daly, U.S. Attorney for Connecticut.

Mark Leigh-James

Mark Leigh-James

Photo Credit: Stamford Police Department

Mark Leigh-James, 24, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stefan Underhill in Bridgeport to the 10 years, followed by five years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of methamphetamine, and one count of possession of a firearm in a drug trafficking crime, Daly said.

According to court documents, in July and August 2015, the Fairfield Police Department orchestrated four uncover buys of meth from Leigh-James. The DEA’s Bridgeport Task Force then made two additional purchases of meth from him.

In August, the Bridgeport man sold an undercover officer 82.9 grams of meth in exchange for $3,600, followed by another deal during September in which he sold a second undercover officer 104 grams of meth in exchange for $8,000. The purity of the methamphetamine sold ranged from 98.7 percent to 100 percent.

Leigh-James was arrested in Bridgeport on Oct. 5, 2015. During a search of a backpack he had been holding at the time of his arrest, officers found 7.5 grams of heroin, and a search of a second backpack located in his vehicle revealed a clear plastic bag containing 120 grams of meth and a loaded Kel-Tec .380 semi-automatic handgun. Agents also found a loaded Charter Arms .44 magnum revolver, which was in a jacket in the vehicle, Daly said.

The .380-handgun had been reported stolen in Stratford in 2009.

At the time of his arrest, Leigh-James was free on bond for state charges involving the unlawful possession of a firearm and oxycodone pills. He has been detained since his arrest. 

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