Former Portsmouth prosecutor pleads guilty to federal drug charges

PORTSMOUTH, Virginia – A former Portsmouth assistant district attorney pleaded guilty Tuesday to two federal drug trafficking counts.

Charges were filed against 38-year-old Matthew Taylor Morris earlier this month. He resigned just four days before the charges were filed.

According to the indictment, between March 2021 and May 2022, Morris, with the assistance of Nicholas Capehart, Donald Rogers, Jeffery Sines and others, conspired and aided in the possession, distribution and sale of marijuana in Hampton Roads and the Eastern District of Virginia.

Rogers was the owner of a pawn shop licensed to sell firearms, and federal prosecutors said he was involved in the interstate trafficking of large quantities of marijuana in 2021 with the help of Capehart and Sines. Prosecutors said they stored about 1,000 pounds of marijuana and cash proceeds at Morris' Top Tier Law Firm on South Independence Boulevard in Virginia Beach.

According to court documents, Morris referred customers, including his own clients, to Rogers to illegally purchase THC products.

In exchange for using the office to store marijuana, Rogers allegedly paid monthly rent for several months and Morris gave Rogers a key to access the office. Rogers also allegedly supplied Morris with 15 pounds of THC products each month, which he sold to his own retail customers. Morris also allegedly illegally obtained a handgun from Rogers.

Morris and Sines both pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy to possess marijuana with intent to resell and possession of marijuana with intent to resell. Morris is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 22, 2025, and faces up to 10 years in prison, while Sines is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 7, 2025, and faces up to 20 years in prison for each count.

Rogers is expected to plead guilty on September 30 and Capehart on October 3.

According to court documents, Morris is currently free on bail while awaiting sentencing.