Meth brought to Harrison County in spare tire, HSI agent says

GULFPORT -- A couple suspected of bringing more than 3.8 pounds of meth to South Mississippi since December have been arrested at a Gulfport motel, where the meth had been delivered in a spare tire, a criminal complaint said.

Mark Hanks, 38, and Melissa Roxanne Brewer, 49, are each held without bond on suspicion of drug trafficking.

They were arrested after state and federal agents allegedly found them with 554 grams of meth and $10,140 in suspected drug money at the Motel 6 on U.S. 49 in Gulfport.

After their arrests, Hanks said he and Brewer had used a spare tire to hide the meth and it wasn't their first time to bring meth to Harrison County, a Homeland Security Investigations agent said in his sworn statement.

A confidential informant had gone to a motel room Feb. 11 to buy an ounce of meth and notified a Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics agent there was a large amount of meth in the room, the HSI agent said.

Hanks and Brewer reportedly were walking to Brewer's Nissan Altima when agents ordered the couple to the ground. Brewer was lying on top of an ounce of meth and Hanks had a small container of marijuana, the agent said. The meth reportedly seized included several smaller packages ready to sell.

Agents reported they seized meth and cash from the room and found a spare tire with a large cut in Brewer's vehicle.

Hanks allegedly told agents he had come to Mississippi in December with 24 ounces of meth, which Brewer reportedly sold to people in Picayune.

Hanks said Brewer had picked him up Feb. 9 in Texas and they arrived in Gulfport the next day with 37.5 ounces of meth, the agent said.

Both were denied bond Friday in U.S. District Court.

They each tested positive for illegal drug use, Hanks has "a substantial criminal history" and Brewer has an escape conviction and is wanted on a probation warrant by the Mississippi Department of Corrections, Magistrate Judge John Gargiulo wrote in detention orders.

Gargiulo ordered a grand jury review of the allegations.

The couple's hometowns were not immediately available Monday.

This story was originally published February 22, 2016 at 12:29 PM with the headline "Meth brought to Harrison County in spare tire, HSI agent says ."