MS Coast man, 77, pleads guilty after feds uncover moonshine distillery in his shed
A Hancock County man has pleaded guilty to the illegal production of moonshine and other charges, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Willie Necaise Jr., 77, entered the pleas Friday to federal charges of unlawful production distilled spirits and interstate travel in aid of a racketeering enterprise.
He’s facing a possible prison sentence of 10 years in prison, fines of up to $250,000 and up to three years of post-release supervision on all charges.
In addition, he will be ordered to pay federal and state taxes totaling about $1.2 million for the illegal distillery.
An investigation began in 2018, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a release, when authorities tracked Necaise as he traveled out-of-state to obtain ingredients for the moonshine, such as 569,775 pounds of sugar, a primary ingredient.
Agents tracked other items, including large amounts of propane, that were delivered to a shed in Hancock County. Agents also observed him bringing a pallet of sugar back from Slidell, Louisiana.
Other items he picked up or had delivered included 1,200 plastic jugs and a 200-gallon stainless steel cooker.
Based on an accounting of his sugar purchases, the federal government determined he had produced over 74,000 gallons of moonshine without a permit and determined tax payments based on that information.
U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst commended agents with the state Department of Revenue, the state Alcohol and Beverage Control Division and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for their work on the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Annette Williams is prosecuting the case.
His sentencing is set for Oct. 16 in federal court in Gulfport before Judge Sul Ozerden.
