Soquel Man, Former UCSC Student Facing 20-Year Prison Term

SOQUEL, CA — A Soquel man has been indicted on three counts of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, United States Attorney David Anderson announced last week. Matthew Wilcox Hutchings, 24, is accused of possessing LSD, MDMA and psilocybin mushrooms with intent to distribute. Prosecutors said Hutchings sold controlled substances to an undercover agent on three occasions in March and April of 2019.

Hutchings was arrested this spring and has a scheduled court appearance on Monday, prosecutors said. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $1 million for each count.

In early May, teams of law enforcement agencies swarmed the Chardonnay Road home of the former UC Santa Cruz student and seized 32 pounds of illegal drugs for sale. The raid followed a months-long investigation into Hutchings' sales of drugs on and off campus, the Santa Cruz Sentinel reported at the time.

—Bay City News contributed to this report.