Man, 37 sentenced to 45 years for drugs, theft
A Texarkana man was sentenced to 45 years in prison Wednesday for drug crimes and theft in Miller County, Ark.
Brian David Mudd, 37, was found guilty by a jury of possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia and theft of property. Circuit Judge Kirk Johnson followed the jury’s recommendation and sentenced Mudd to consecutive 15-year terms on each of the three offenses.
Mudd and a co-defendant who is scheduled for trial this summer were arrested March 5, 2017, at a mobile home in the 6900 block of McClure Road in Miller County after eight stolen antique porcelain gas station signs were found in their possession, according to a probable cause affidavit prepared by Cpl. Phillip Hardemon of the Miller County Sheriff’s Office.
The victim in the case, Paul Murphy, told investigators he had been contacted by a friend who had been contacted by a man wanting to sell the antique signs. The victim’s friend believed the signs he was being offered for sale were stolen.
Hardemon went to the address described by the victim’s friend and found the eight stolen signs partially covered by a black tarp next to the front porch of a mobile home where a red truck was parked. The truck was registered to Mudd’s co-defendant.
Hardemon called Murphy and the two compared the signs found on McClure Road to photos of Murphy’s signs he had stored on his cellphone. Recovered from the trailer on McClure were signs which said: Texaco; Gulf Ahead; Phillips 6; Phillip’s 66; Colonial Paint; Loreco; Dino Sinelair; and Pennzoil. Murphy was reunited with his property and left the scene.
Later that day a search warrant was executed on the mobile home where the signs were found. Mudd was found hiding beneath a bed and his co-defendant was allegedly found hiding beneath a couch. Sitting out in the living room were methamphetamine, two syringes and two spoons containing meth residue.
“We are very appreciative and pleased with the jury’s work and verdict,” Deputy Prosecuting Attorney David Cotton said. “The Miller County Sheriff’s Office did a good job presenting this case. The goal or hope is that prosecuting these type cases will help curb or reduce thefts and drug use in the county.”
The jury found Mudd not guilty of a count of simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms. That charge was levied in connection with guns found beneath the bed where Mudd was discovered hiding. Mudd was represented at trial by Texarkana lawyer Tommy Potter.
Mudd’s co-defendant, Tobey McCarley, 39, is scheduled for trial in June.