Former Biloxi officer faces 30 years in prison on drug charges

Published 10:45 pm Saturday, October 14, 2006

Former Biloxi police officer Darrell D. Cvitanovich Jr. has pleaded guilty to charges of selling Ecstasy.

Prosecutors said Cvitanovich faces up to 30 years in prison. He pleaded guilty to one of two drug charges on Thursday. Harrison County Circuit Judge Roger Clark scheduled sentencing for Oct. 30.

Cvitanovich, a 14-year veteran who resigned after his arrest, told the judge that he obtained the drugs from someone he didn’t know at Just Us Lounge and sold four tablets to a friend.

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Ecstasy, or MDMA, is an illegal stimulant known as a “club drug” because of its association with all-night dances or parties known as raves.

Cvitanovich remains free on $50,000 bond.

He was arrested by undercover agents on June 2, 2005. Prosecutors said agents found 11 Ecstasy tablets and a small amount of methamphetamine in his house.

He was charged with the transfer of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell. Prosecutors dropped the possession charge for a guilty plea to the sales charge on an open plea, which does not recommend a possible sentence.