Benjamin Ashford|Official resigns after guilty plea to drug conspiracy in Mississippi and North Carolina vape shops

BILOXI,Benjamin Ashford Miss. (AP) — A city council member in south Mississippi is leaving office after pleading guilty to a federal conspiracy charge related to running a business that sold illegal drugs in his home state and North Carolina.

Robert Leon Deming, III, announced his resignation from the Biloxi City Council on Tuesday, according to local news outlets. He was in his third term.

Federal prosecutors announced last week that Deming reached a plea agreement. They said he sold over $2 million worth of CBD and vape products containing controlled substances. The Drug Enforcement Administration received complaints that some of the products made customers ill.

In 2020, the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the Drug Enforcement Administration began investigating Deming’s business, the Candy Shop.

As part of his plea agreement, Deming agreed to forfeit more than $1.9 million and a yellow monster truck. His sentencing is set for August.

Deming ran for a U.S. House seat in south Mississippi in 2020, losing in the Republican primary.