KINGMAN – A Kingman man spent a good 20 minutes trying to convince a local judge he should be placed on probation before his prison sentence was ordered. Mathew Faumuina, 36, engaged in the lengthy oratory at his April 29 sentencing hearing before Mohave County Superior Court Judge Derek Carlisle.
Faumuina said he’s a changed man following his arrest on multiple drug charges last Sept. He spoke of working two jobs, regular church attendance and a commitment to betterment for himself and his family.
“You have my word that I will follow every law and not violate probation,” Faumuina said. “I throw myself on the mercy of the court. I believe in second chances.”
Prosecutor Eric Nolan urged the court to impose a prison term for Faumuina’s involvement in alleged sales of various drugs. Officers reportedly confiscated 14 lbs. of marijuana, 5 oz. of marijuana wax, 40 pre-filled marijuana vapes, 16 grams of fentanyl powder, 2 lbs. of psilocybin mushrooms, two firearms and more than $1,000 in cash during a search of the defendant’s residence in the 400 block of Wilshire Avenue.
That investigation of another person’s drug overdose led to Faumuina’s arrest was cited by Nolan as an aggravating factor for sentencing. Judge Carlisle agreed on that point and focused on the fact that the attempted possession of narcotic drugs for sale conviction involved fentanyl.
“Fentanyl is getting to be just as destructive, and is as big or maybe a bigger problem in Mohave County than methamphetamine,” Carlisle said. He imposed a two-year prison term.
Dave Hawkins
