Toledo Man Sentenced for Drug and Firearm Charges

TOLEDO – James Luther Sawyer IV, 33 of Toledo, Ohio was sentenced on Tuesday August 15, to 10 years in prison by U.S. District Judge James R. Knepp after earlier pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and to being a felon in possession of a firearm. Judge Knepp also ordered Sawyer to pay a $300 special assessment and be placed on supervised release for 4 years upon release from imprisonment.

According to court documents, on April 24, 2022, Toledo police officers responded to a 911 call of a man pointing a handgun at passing vehicles. Officers spotted Sawyer fitting the description in the area of Huron and Lagrange Streets in Toledo. When Sawyer was ordered to stop by officers, he removed a handgun from his pants and threw it to the ground. After officers arrested Sawyer and recovered the handgun, they searched Sawyer’s backpack and found 28 plastic bags containing approximately 67 grams of methamphetamine. Sawyer was prohibited from possessing firearms due to a prior Felonious Assault conviction in Lucas County Common Pleas Court.

This case was investigated by the Toledo Police Department and the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sara Al-Sorghali.