WARREN – A drug arrest in the Warren area last Friday revealed a large number of different narcotics, including Fentanyl, according to Tyler County Sheriff Bryan Weatherford.
Weatherford said that the arrest happened when deputies with the Tyler County Sheriff’s Office stopped Jo Lynn Groze, a 30-year-old Warren woman and a passenger, Blake Dakota Matthews, 23, also of Warren on a traffic violation in Warren.
The deputies could smell the odor of marijuana from the vehicle and searched it. They were able to locate a small amount of marijuana underneath the driver’s seat, along with a container that was concealed. Inside the container was 53.8 grams of a crystalline substance that field-tested positive for methamphetamines.
A black bag, which Weatherford said belonged to Matthews, contained 152 grams of psilocybin mushrooms and approximately 5.7 grams of Fentanyl mixed with meth, along with a digital scale that contained mushroom residue.
Groze and Matthews were taken into custody and transported to the Tyler County Jail, where Pct. 3 Justice of the Peace Mike Hughes set their bonds at $150,000 and $225,000, respectively. They remain in custody.
Groze is charged with manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance (penalty group one) for the meth.
Matthews is being charged with manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance (penalty group 2 or 2-A) for the hallucinogenic mushrooms (more than four grams) and a manufacture/delivery charge for the Fentanyl (penalty group 1/1-B).
Because Fentanyl is lethal in microscopic amounts, possession of the drug is a felony that carries penalties, if convicted, from 180 days in state jail to 99 years or life in prison, along with fines of up to $100,000.
Weatherford warned that the use and abuse of illegal drugs continue to fuel crime, addiction, overdoses and violence across the nation. “Our deputies work hard every day to combat this epidemic through aggressive enforcement, investigations and partnerships with other federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and the Tyler County District Attorney’s Office,” he said.
“The Tyler County Sheriff’s Office remains committed to protecting our citizens and keeping our communities safe. If you choose to be a part of the problem, and not a part of the solution to combat illegal drugs in Tyler County, expect to face the consequences,” he said.
