Lexington County Man Sentenced to Federal Prison on Drug and Gun Charges

COLUMBIA, S.C. - De'Marionne Zaquann Miller, 22, of Lexington, has been sentenced to more than nine years in federal prison after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and possessing the firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime.

Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed that on June 14, 2025, deputies with the Lexington County Sheriff's Department responded to an apartment after reports of a domestic violence incident.

While deputies were on their way to the location, they learned that Miller had an outstanding warrant for a probation violation. As law enforcement arrived on scene, Miller ran out of the apartment with an AK style rifle and a backpack. When deputies caught Miller, he did not have the rifle, but after arresting Miller, the deputies retraced his steps and located the AK style firearm.

In the seized backpack, deputies located cash, numerous individual bags of marijuana, and two cellphones. A subsequent search of the apartment revealed a large vacuum sealed bag of marijuana, a digital drug scale, and ammunition. Miller is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition based upon prior convictions for escape and unlawful carrying of a pistol.

United States District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie sentenced Miller to 111 months total imprisonment, 51 months on the felon in possession of a firearm charge and a consecutive 60 months on the possession of a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was investigated by the FBI Columbia Field Office and the Lexington County Sheriff's Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney William K. Witherspoon is prosecuting the case.

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