Carson City sheriff's SET officers arrest man who dumped meth into coffee cup

The Carson City Sheriff’s Office Special Enforcement Team arrested a man Tuesday after he allegedly emptied packaged baggies of methamphetamine into his coffee cup in order to conceal evidence.

John Foster Jr., 55, of Las Vegas, was arrested at 11:47 a.m. in the area of Robinson and Plaza streets. He faces charges of felony possession with intent to sell Schedule 1-2 controlled substances, possession of a controlled substance, (meth), gross misdemeanor destroying and concealing evidence and possession of drug paraphernalia.

According to the arrest report, a SET deputy was on patrol in the area and observed a black 2004 Mercedes turn onto southbound Carson Street from a motel in the 1700 block of North Carson Street. The motel is known as a high crime area and for heavy drug activity, according to the report.

The driver of the vehicle did not signal their turn from the private drive and turned directly into northbound traffic, causing another vehicle to slow down in that lane. The deputy stopped the vehicle at the intersection of Plaza and Robinson streets and spoke with the female driver, Foster Jr., who was the front passenger, and a rear passenger.

A second deputy responded to the scene, while the arresting deputy spoke with the driver at his patrol vehicle.

While the arresting deputy spoke with the driver, the second deputy removed Foster Jr., from the vehicle and detained him after having observed him tearing plastic baggies and attempting to discard contents in the vehicle. Officers examined the area discovered there was methamphetamine mashed into the seat cushions and poured into a coffee cup in the center console, the report states.

A drug detection canine conducted an exterior free air sniff around the vehicle and alerted to the presence of a drug odor.

Located was a white plastic baggie on the passenger floorboard that contained around 10 grams of marijuana and then around 1.5 grams of marijuana in a separate baggie.

Also located was a digital scale in the man’s suitcase in the trunk of the vehicle. The weighing surface had green and white residue on it, the report states.

Based on the presence of a scale, several baggies and the weight of the drugs in those baggies, it appeared the drugs were packaged for sale, according to the report. All items were seized and booked into evidence.

The arresting deputy spoke with Foster Jr. and informed him of his Miranda rights in which he stated he understood and agreed to speak about the items in the vehicle.

The deputy asked the man about the methamphetamine and baggies he was caught tearing. The man said he saw deputies coming and wanted to get rid of the drugs and admitted to pouring the methamphetamine in his coffee, the arrest report states. He was taken into custody and the two others in the vehicle were released. Bail: $13,637.

In other arrests:
— The Carson City Sheriff’s Office Special Enforcement Team arrested a 38-year-old woman Tuesday, 3:03 p.m. in the area of Pine and Hot Springs Road for misdemeanor violation of Department of Alternative Sentencing conditions, making an unsafe lane change and driving on a revoked license for DUI.

A 30-year-old man with the woman was also arrested for misdemeanor DAS violation after the man was found to have three butterfly knives, a folding knife and a mini-axe and knife combo in the center console of the vehicle. The man was on probation with a “no weapons” clause, confirmed through DAS.

Deputies learned the 38-year-old woman had a revoked driver’s license for DUI and was on supervision with the court with “obey all laws” and “no weapons” clauses. She was held without bail in lieu of a hearing for the DAS violation, and $1,219 for the other charges. The 30-year-old man’s bail was set at $3,000 cash.

— A 51-year-old Carson City woman turned herself into sheriff’s deputies for a misdemeanor failure to appear warrant issued in October 2017 out of Carson City Justice Court. Bail: $3,000.

All information for the crime log (unless otherwise noted) comes from the arrest reports supplied by the Carson City Sheriff's Office, and is considered by law to be public information. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The policy of Carson Now is to name anyone who is arrested for a felony offense.