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DEA
Ex-sgt. James Hickox of the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office pleaded not guilty to one charge of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.
Hickox was arrested earlier this month after an FBI investigation found illegal drugs, large amounts of cash and firearms in his home, office and police cruiser. Thursday, he came before the Middle District of Florida to enter his plea in a preliminary hearing.
He faces a potential prison sentence of up to five years and up to $5 million in fines if he is convicted. He could also potentially be on supervised release for the rest of his life.
According to a criminal complaint released March 13, a man arrested by Homeland Security in Aug. 2022 is cooperating with investigators to prove Hickox and another unidentified law enforcement officer utilized him and another man to skim drugs and cash seized by law enforcement.
A Florida Highway Patrol officer was also arrested on drug-related charges the same time as Hickox, though any connection between the two has yet to be confirmed.
The man in the complaint reportedly told FBI agents Hickox and the other officer let him and the other man keep portions of the drugs and cash confiscated. In return, they handed a portion of the profits over to Hickox and the other officer.
During controlled buys overseen by Hickox, the man said he had them take the cocaine they were to keep and refill the bag with dietary supplements or other cutting agents.
According to the complaint, a search of Hickox’s home found hundreds of grams of substances testing positive for different drugs. In the detached garage of the home, the FBI reported finding almost 200 grams of fentanyl, over 100 grams of “an unknown powder substance,” a loaded handgun, almost 20 grams of cocaine, payment receipts and two different vacuum sealers, which investigators said could be used to seal the individual packages of drugs.
Inside the house, FBI investigators said they found “thousands of pills that looked like narcotics but were actually sugar pills.” Some of the pills were in a bag labeling them as “roxies,” a slang term for Roxicodone, also known as oxycodone. Investigators said they suspected these individually packaged drugs were set to be sold illegally.
Investigators said they also found three shoeboxes full of cash, totaling an estimated total of $100,000. Inside a safe, they said they also found another $76,245 in cash.
In the attic of the house, FBI Special Agents said they found three pistols inside an official DEA evidence bag and three bricks weighing one kilogram each of benzocaine (a topical medication used for minor injuries such as sunburns or poison ivy and is often added to cocaine before it’s sold, as reported by the FBI).
A search of Hickox’s NCSO marked car revealed $225 in cash and three cell phones, two of which investigators said they suspected of being prepaid and used for drug trafficking. A similar search of Hickox’s NCSO office (conducted by NCSO personnel) found 300 to 400 ecstasy/MDMA tablets in his desk.
Holly Dorman
News-Leader
hdorman@fbnewsleader.com
