A Newton man will spend seven to 10 years in prison after his conviction for trafficking opium by possession during Catawba County Superior Court on Wednesday, June 4, 2025.
Patrick Thomas Havens, 46, was given the active sentence by the Honorable Karen Eady-Williams, Superior Court Judge from Mecklenburg County, after he entered the guilty plea.
He also will be required to pay a mandatory fine of $750,000.
The defendant will serve his period of incarceration in custody of the North Carolina Division of Adult Corrections.
During a traffic stop on July 31, 2022, a K-9 alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle driven by Havens, leading to the recovery of a trafficking amount of opiates. Testing by the State Crime Lab confirmed the opiates to be fentanyl.
Casey Day was the lead investigator for the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant District Attorney Melanie Earles prosecuted the matter for the State with aid from Legal Assistant Jordan Arney.