Parolee sentenced to prison for dealing drugs

Yeager

By Allison Scarbrough, News Editor

HART — A 36-year-old man was sentenced to 29 months to 20 years in prison Monday, Aug 4, in Oceana County’s 51st Circuit Court for a conviction of delivery/manufacture of cocaine, heroin or another narcotic, according to court records.

Stephen Dale Yeager pleaded guilty to the charge, June 16. Yeager received credit for one day served in jail and was ordered to pay $198 in fines and costs. Charges of delivery/manufacture of methamphetamine and prisoner in possession of contraband in jail were dismissed, court records state.

“Stephen Dale Yeager was stopped by an Oceana County sheriff’s deputy on 88th Avenue after the deputy observed him driving and used the tools at his disposal to determine Yeager was not licensed to drive,” said Oceana County Prosecuting Attorney Joseph Bizon. The date of the offense was March 10, 2025, according to court records.

“This began as an ordinary traffic stop,” said Prosecutor Bizon. “Yeager was not able to drive the vehicle away, and no other person was present so the vehicle was to be towed. Consistent with policy, the vehicle was inventory searched. This led to the discovery of multiple — eight — small baggies of a powdery substance as well as a scale. Subsequent lab testing of the substance in two different bags identified cocaine in one bag and a mix of heroin and fentanyl in another. Current Michigan State Police lab policies are that when multiple samples are present, they will test the two samples that appear to be the most serious substance. It is assumed that the other bags contained similar substances. Due to the circumstances, multiple bags and the scales, he was charged with possession with intent to deliver.”

According to Michigan Department of Corrections records, Yeager was on parole at the time of the offense. He was sentenced to prison in 2022 for Muskegon County convictions of assaulting/resisting/obstructing police and firearms possession by a felon, according to the MDOC. He was sentenced to prison in Muskegon County for felony convictions of first-degree and second-degree home invasion in 2010 and carrying a concealed weapon in 2006.

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