Man gets eight years in heroin, gun case

BY KEITH EPPS

A man who claims he lost $55,000 in a January burglary lost something even more valuable Wednesday—eight years of freedom.

Maliek Yun-Tsong Lee, 27, was convicted of heroin and firearms charges in Spotsylvania Circuit Court. As part of a plea agreement, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison with eight years suspended.

According to evidence presented by prosecutor Matt Lowery, Spotsylvania detectives began investigating Lee earlier this year after learning he was selling heroin. They executed a search warrant at his Spotsylvania home after watching him make a pick-up at a bus stop in his BMW.

Lee and another man were in the home when police raided it. A .22-caliber revolver, $4,500 in cash and marijuana and 400 packets of heroin were among the items seized.

Lee was not legally allowed to have a gun because he was a convicted felon. He had been convicted of marijuana distribution charges in Stafford in 2010.

According to court records, Lee told police that he got the gun for personal protection following a break-in at his home in January, about a month before the raid.

Lee reported the burglary, but later told detectives he did not report all of the items that had been taken.

Those items included $55,000 in cash, two ounces of heroin, more than a pound of marijuana and three guns. He told police that he was trying to “rebuild” his money that was stolen from him.

The BMW and various electronics were seized from Lee as part of his arrest. Attorney Stuart Sullivan represented Lee.

Keith Epps: 540/374-5404

kepps@freelancestar.com

Permalink: http://news.fredericksburg.com/newsdesk/2012/08/01/man-gets-eight-years-in-heroin-gun-case/