Two men arrested in an April raid will face federal charges that carry stiffer penalties.
By CHASE SQUIRES
Published July 1, 2003
DADE CITY - State prosecutors are dropping lesser charges against two Lachoochee men who face federal drug and weapons charges. The men were arrested in an April raid that netted a gun that may be part of the investigation into the killing of a Pasco County Sheriff's Office lieutenant.
Marcus J. Brockington, 23, and Andrew Steven Jackson, 23, both of Wormack Road, were arrested by Pasco County Sheriff's Office investigators in an April raid that followed a string of undercover drug buys. Records show Brockington was charged with possession of crack cocaine. Jackson was charged with possession of marijuana and trafficking cocaine.
In the raid on a house at 20710 Steward Road in Lacoochee, deputies reported seizing cocaine, marijuana, and several shotguns and rifles. The owner of one stolen rifle found at the house, an SKS assault weapon, told the Times last month that deputies had visited him and told him they were looking for another SKS that was stolen from him at the same time.
The Sheriff's Office later posted a cash reward for information leading to an SKS assault rifle that might have been used in the fatal ambush on sheriff's Lt. Charles "Bo" Harrison.
Harrison, 57, was shot in the back on June 1 as he sat in his patrol car on a surveillance assignment outside Rumors nightclub in Lacoochee.
A Pasco County grand jury indicted Alfredie Steele, 19, of Lacoochee on a charge of first-degree murder in the killing. Steele was a close friend of a third man arrested in the April drug raid, Michael Anthony Reed, who was arrested but later died in a car chase with sheriff's deputies.
As a result of the April raid, a federal grand jury last week indicted Brockington and Jackson on charges of maintaining a house for the sale of crack cocaine, possession of a firearm as part of a drug conspiracy, and two counts each of conspiracy to possess and distribute crack cocaine. The grand jury also indicted Jackson on one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Assistant State Attorney Manny Garcia told Circuit Judge Wayne Cobb on Monday that the state was dropping its charges against Brockington and Jackson.
He said later that the move would clear the way for federal prosecutors. The pair face much stiffer penalties if they are convicted on the federal charges, Garcia said.
Prosecutor Phil Van Allen said it is common for the state to turn over cases involving weapons possession to the federal government because the penalties can be significantly higher.
Jackson and Brockington were being held Monday in the Hillsborough County jail on Orient Road. Jail records indicate both are being held without bail, although a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office said a $50,000 bail is available for Brockington.
