Sikeston man sentenced to more than 10 years in prison on gun, drug charges

SIKESTON, Mo. (KFVS) - A Sikeston man was sentenced to more than 10 years in federal prison on gun and drug charges.

According to a release from U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri Sayler Fleming, 30-year-old Cameron Melton Malone was sentenced to serve a total aggregate sentence of 125 months in federal prison for felon in possession of a firearm and possession with intent to distribute marijuana.

He appeared for his sentencing hearing on Monday, March 20 in Cape Girardeau.

At a guilty plea hearing in December 2022, Malone admitted that on June 12, 2022 he tried to flee from law enforcement officers in Sikeston after an officer tried to pull him over.

During a high-speed chase, Malone left the road and traveled through a parking lot where numerous people had gathered for a party, causing the crowd to scatter to avoid being hit.

When the vehicle came to a rest, Malone ran away and was later caught hiding in some bushes. He was taken into custody, but struggled with officers while they placed him in the patrol vehicle.

During a search of his vehicle, investigators found a quantity of marijuana, packaged for sale, and a loaded Diamondback, AR-15, semi-automatic rifle. Investigators said the rifle was loaded and ready to fire, with 35 rounds in the magazine and a round in the chamber.

Malone cannot possess guns under federal law because he is a convicted felon, including a prior firearms offense for carrying a concealed weapon in 2012 and an assault conviction in 2019.

After serving the latest sentence, Malone will be placed on supervised release for three years.

This case was investigated by the Sikeston Department of Public Safety and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Hunter handled the prosecution for the government.

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