Feds: Pittsburg man drove into a ditch in front of a cop while possessing a pound of meth, then insisted he was planning to ‘smoke it all’

OAKLAND — A Pittsburg man has been charged in federal court with possessing methamphetamine for sale, despite his insistence that the pound allegedly found in his car was intended for personal consumption only.

Levar Gaulding, 44, was charged with possession with intent to distribute at least 500 grams of methamphetamine, a federal offense that qualifies for a mandatory minimum five-year prison term and a maximum of four decades behind bars. He is next due in court Feb. 1, where a federal magistrate will determine whether to grant a prosecution request to hold him without bail while the case is pending.

The charges stem from an incident on Jan. 11, 2022, when Gaulding allegedly made a series of unforced errors that landed him in the back of a police car. It all started when two Contra Costa Sheriff’s deputies on patrol in Pittsburg sat in their patrol car and watched Gaulding drive a vehicle over a sidewalk and into a drainage ditch, according to the criminal complaint.

After realizing he was stuck, Gaulding exited the car, apparently noticed the deputies, then lifted his shirt to prove he was unarmed while simultaneously admitting possessing of a “crank pipe,” the complaint alleges. A second officer looked into the driver’s seat and noticed a “shard” of methamphetamine in “full view,” the complaint says.

Police ultimately searched the car and found a total of one pound of methamphetamine, though prosecutors concede that it had been diluted with a cutting agent by about 25 percent. Gaulding was arrested on suspicion of possessing the drugs and a shotgun that was also reportedly recovered from the vehicle.

“When an officer asked why Gaulding had so much methamphetamine, Gaulding denied intending to sell it, insisting that he and his friends planned to smoke it all,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Yeh wrote in a motion to detain Gaulding. Yeh describes the amount found as being “consistent with distribution quantities.”

Even before the arrest, the deputies recognized Gaulding, who has 14 prior felonies and 18 prior misdemeanor convictions, including for drug trafficking offenses according to court records.