Kiln man sentenced to prison for burglary at Boy Scout camp

District Attorney Joel Smith announced today that 34-year old Dameon Cuevas of Kiln, pled guilty this week to two counts of burglary and one count of felon in possession of a weapon at the Hancock County Courthouse. Circuit Court Judge Christopher Schmidt accepted Cuevas’ pleas and sentenced him to 24 years, 16 suspended, 8 years to serve in the Mississippi Department of Corrections, followed by 5 years of post-release supervision, a $2,000 fine and $3,500 restitution to be paid to Salem Boy Scout Reservation Camp for their damages. Cuevas’ sentence will run consecutive to a 15 year sentence he is currently serving in the Department of Corrections due to a revocation of his probation on a prior conviction for possession of precursor chemicals associated with manufacturing narcotics. Cuevas had one prior felony conviction.

The investigation began on August 5, 2017, when the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a burglary at the Salem Boy Scout Reservation Camp. Deputies used surveillance cameras to identify the two suspects in the burglaries. The men broke into a workshop and cafeteria areas and removed firearms and tools. Deputies successfully recovered most of the property that was taken, including firearms and a pickup truck. The suspects were interviewed and confessed to the burglaries. “Cuevas, a previously convicted felon, was also charged with felon in possession of a weapon because firearms were among the items stolen during the burglary,” said ADA Chris Daniel who prosecuted the case.

Cuevas’ co-Defendant in this case, Jeremy Perkins, failed to appear for court on April 16, 2018, and is currently wanted by the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office. Anyone with information on the location of Jeremy Perkins can contact 228-466-6900.