Wanted felon caught by SO at roadblock Saturday night
A convicted felon out on early release who had violated the terms last year was arrested Saturday night at a roadblock in Neshoba County.
The man, Nicholas Lamar Catchings, 35, was arrested, Sheriff Eric Clark said in a Facebook post Sunday afternoon.
Chris Baker of the Mississippi Department of Corrections confirmed that Catchings was arrested on a warrant for violation of the terms of his earned early release and was being held in the Neshoba County Jail Tuesday pending his being transported back to MDOC custody.
Catchings had been serving a 17-year prison sentence for auto burglary in Leake County and strong-armed robbery and auto burglary convictions in Neshoba County when he gained and earned early release in March 2020.
He was arrested again last month and accused of stealing two purses from a parked vehicle downtown. He bonded out four days later.
Local law enforcement officials didn’t know at that time about the violation of the earned early release warrant issued by the Mississippi Department of Corrections, they said.
Last December, Catchings was arrested in Neshoba County and charged with three counts of grand larceny, including the theft of a rifle from a Mississippi Bureau of Investigations agent’s vehicle during a November revival at The First Baptist Church.
The MDOC warrant for Catchings’ arrest on the absconding supervision charge in connection with his early release was issued on Nov. 19, 2020, and reported for the first time in the Democrat last week.
Clark said on Sunday that the Neshoba County Sheriff’s Office coordinated with the Mississippi Highway Patrol to increase officer presence in Neshoba County Saturday night.
“This was an effort to detect impaired drivers on our roadways,” Clark said.
Neshoba County Sheriff’s Deputies reported the following:
• 21- Driving with Suspended License or Driving Without License
• 4 Justice Court Warrants
• 5 Felony Possession of Controlled Substance (Methamphetamine)
• 9 No proof of liability insurance
• 6 Child restraint violations
• 8 Possession of marijuana in motor vehicle
• 5 Possession of drug paraphernalia
• 2 Driving Under Influence (DUI)
• 3 Misdemeanor Possession of Controlled Substance
• 6 Miscellaneous traffic violations
• 1 MDOC Warrant (Nicholas Lamar Catchings)
“I want to thank Cpt. Hutchins and all MHP Troopers that participated in the saturation detail,” Clark said. “Their dedicated service to Troop H and Neshoba County should not go unrecognized.”
Call the Neshoba County Sheriff’s Office at 601-656-1414 with crime tips or anonymous at 855-485-TIPS (8477).