SH 19 Traffic Stop Yields Methamphetamine, 1 Felony Arrest
Deputies located 4.4 kilos of cocaine on a bus stopped west of Sulphur Springs on Interstate 30 Thursday night. Another traffic stop April 8 on State Highway 19 north of Sulphur Springs yielded a small amount of methamphetamine and a Klondike woman’s arrest, according to sheriff’s reports. A Tyler woman was also transferred to Hopkins County jail on a controlled substance related warrant.
Cocaine Found On A Bus
Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Thomas Patterson conducted a traffic stop on a blue Volvo bus with Mexico license plates around 9:30 p.m. April 8, 2021, near mile marker 137 on Interstate 30 east. During the course of the stop, Patterson deployed his canine partner, Chiv. The police K-9 alerted to the presence of narcotics in the lower baggage storage area of the bus.
Patterson instructed all occupants to grab their luggage from the storage area on the bottom of the bus. One bag remained unclaimed. Patterson noted one man, a 30-year-old from Laredo, did not retrieve any luggage from the storage compartment, but did have a bag with him in a passenger compartment in the bus. The tag on the unclaimed bag matched the tag on the bag the Laredo man had in the bus.
A look inside the unclaimed baggage revealed 4.4 kilograms of a substance which field tested positive as cocaine, Patterson alleged in arrest reports. Consequently, 30-year-old Angel Hernandez of Laredo was taken into custody and transported to Hopkins County jail. He was booked in at 12:29 a.m. April 9, 2021, on a possession of more than 400 grams of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance.
Hernandez remained in Hopkins County jail late Friday morning, April 9, 2021, on the felony controlled substance charge for the 4.4 kilos of cocaine found on the bus. Bond was set at $100,000 on the charge.
Methamphetamine Found In A Wallet
HCSO Deputy Elijah Fite reported stopping a Ford F150 just before 8:30 p.m. Thursday on State Highway 19, about half a mile north of Loop 301 in Sulphur Springs, for a traffic violation. Upon contact with the woman in the pickup, Fite noted the 70-year-old Klondike resident displayed nervous behavior, moving around in her truck while talking to him. She allegedly struggled to find her license and insurance, but agreed to let deputies search her vehicle, which she admitted contained marijuana.
Fite reported finding a wallet with a small baggy containing a crystal-like substance which later field tested positive for methamphetamine. Consequently, 70-year-old Charlotte Ruth Toothman was taken into custody about 20 minutes later and transported by HCSO Deputy Nick Marney to jail for processing. The pickup was impounded and the suspected methamphetamine was seized as evidence. It weighed 0.38 gram, including packaging.
Toothman was booked into jail just before 10:30 p.m. April 8, 2021, for possession of less than 1 gram of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance. She remained in the Hopkins County jail Friday morning, April 9, 2021; bond on the felony controlled substance charge was set at $2,500.
Transferred On Warrant
HCSO Deputy Amanda Weatherford took 28-year-old Tyler woman into custody at Plane State Jail, where she was held on a detainer for Hopkins County. Weatherford transported Brandy Kay Franklin to Hopkins County jail, where she was booked at 3 p.m. Thursday on warrants for possession of drug paraphernalia and violation of probation, which she was on for a possession of less than 1 gram of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance, according to arrest reports.
She remained in Hopkins County jail Friday morning, April 9, 2021, on the probation charge, according to jail reports. The original controlled substance and paraphernalia offenses were alleged to have occurred on Feb. 19, 2017, according to jail reports.
If you have an emergency, dial 9-1-1
The Hopkins County Sheriff’s Office is located at 298 Rosemont Sulphur Springs, TX 75482. You can reach them for non-emergency matters at (903) 438-4040.
