On August 17th, 2021 Branden Thomas was sentenced in the Circuit Court for Queen Anne’s County to serve 16 years at the Department of Corrections with a 4-year suspended sentence, followed by a 5-year period of supervised probation.

The sentence came following Mr. Thomas’s guilty plea to possession with the intent to distribute cocaine and the recommendation of Deputy State’s Attorney Michael “Mick” Cuches, who prosecuted the case on behalf of the State. Cuches commented that “When someone is actively involved in the distribution of drugs, their activities are not only a risk to themselves, but they also pose a greater danger to the broader community, a danger that is reflected in the severity of Mr. Thomas’ sentencing today.” 

The charges arose out of a traffic stop on a car with a broken taillight on December 7th, 2020, around 11:30 pm by a Queen Anne’s County Deputy Sheriff on Leverage Road. The driver was Branden Thomas, who was observed to be extremely nervous and looking downward several times while speaking with the Deputy.  The Deputy then noticed a syringe, with a bent needle end containing heroin, sticking out from underneath Mr. Thomas’s leg. Thomas was placed under arrest and a search of the vehicle was conducted. The search revealed a metal spoon with burn markings on the bottom along with a dried-up cotton ball and heroin residue, a container with a jar that held an unknown liquid, a purse that had a straw with heroin, and a bag that held the following items: a glass pipe with crack cocaine, a plastic bag holding 15 gel capsules of heroin, 7 glass viles with crack cocaine, a plastic bag with 5 capsules of Adderall, 6 pills of Adderall, and one bag containing marijuana. Police also found a ledger with names and amounts of money owed for CDS transactions along with a bag holding multiple empty plastic baggies inside the vehicle.  Mr. Cuches thanked the law enforcement officers involved in the case who were able to successfully get these drugs off the streets.