CAPE CORAL, FL - April 21, 2020 – According to an online new report from YourSun.com, several individuals were arrested and charged with trafficking meth during a police stop over the weekend. Law enforcement made a stop on Marion Avenue in the Punta Gorda on Saturday night at approximately 11:15 p.m. The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office stated that this area was a known drug dealing area, and there has been a substantial increase in the number of drug dealing activities in this area over the past few weeks.
The suspects were stopped when the driver of the vehicle ran a stop sign. The arrest affidavit claims that the driver of the motor vehicle has a history of drug dealing. Police stated that the driver appeared to be acting nervous, and the driver told police to "do the dog thing." Sheriff's deputies deployed a K-9 to detect any drug inside the motor vehicle. The K-9 indicated that there were drugs around the driver's car door. However, the news report states that no drugs were found inside the motor vehicle during a search.
The suspect gave police permission to search the suspect's clothing for drugs. This was when the Charlotte County Sheriff's Deputy discovered a large bad inside the man's pants. The suspect told police that they did not have the right to continue the body search. The affidavit stated that the suspect discontinued to remove the bag from his pants and no longer cooperated with police. The suspect was arrested on the charge of resisting a police officer without the use of violence and taken into custody. While at the county jail, police were able to obtain a strip search authorization. Police then discovered a large bag of methamphetamine that weighed about 14 grams. The news report states that the suspect may have used a rubber band to secure the baggie in the suspect's pants to avoid detection. Additional charges were brought against the suspect, including possession of drug paraphernalia, trafficking more than 14 grams methamphetamine, and introduction of contraband into a county detention facility.
Later that night, a Charlotte County Sheriff's Deputy stopped another motor vehicle due to the driver not coming to a complete stop while at an intersection. The driver and the passenger of the motor vehicle were from Cape Coral. According to the arrest affidavit, the driver stated that he picked up the passenger who he said was his "side piece." "The deputy noted a strong smell of marijuana was detected in the motor vehicle, and the deputy asked to search the man's vehicle. The driver stated that he had previously smoked marijuana, and this was the source of the marijuana smell. According to the affidavit, the deputy searched the motor vehicle and discovered a backpack with a black box that contained pieces of meth, a torch lighter, two scales, and scale calibration weights. The deputy became suspicious that the suspect was likely hiding more meth due to the scales and calibration weights. A drug-sniffing K-9 was called to the scene and performed a free air sniff resulting in the K-9 alerting deputies to the right, the front side of the driver's door. The deputies discovered 83.63 grams of meth inside the air filtration system of the suspect's automobile.
The driver and passenger of the car were arrested and charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and trafficking more than 14 grams amphetamine.