W’burg police recover 1 pound of suspected methamphetamine

Four people are being held in the Whitley County Detention Center in lieu of $25,000 cash bonds after Williamsburg police recovered about two pounds of suspected methamphetamine at a local motel early Saturday morning.

“It is going to be worth several thousand dollars in street value,” noted Williamsburg Police Chief Wayne Bird.

Williamsburg Police Officer Johnny Fulton charged Bobby Lee Owens, 54, Chatsworth, Georgia, and Tasha L. Lovett, 35, Nancy Gilreath Doran, 31, Darrell Ray Murphy, 40, all of Strunk, with first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.

Fulton also charged Lovett with first-degree possession of a controlled substance, and Doran with theft of identity of another without consent.

The four were arrested about 6:30 a.m. at the Super 8 motel in Williamsburg near Highway 92.

Bird said that because of all the people in town for the Jeep Jamboree, some of his officers were working a security detail patrolling the parking lots of the local motels and hotels when they observed two women hanging out in the parking lot of the Super 8.

“They appeared to be rummaging through vehicles,” Bird said.

When officers confronted the two women, neither of them could produce identification, and at least one of them gave a false name to authorities, Bird said.

After learning one of the women had given a false identification, Bird said officers patted them down and discovered 20 grams of suspected methamphetamine and digital scales.

Officers then learned that the two women were staying at the motel with a couple of males.

Fulton obtained a search warrant and police recovered about one pound of suspected meth in the motel room, Bird said. Police also seized a large amount of cash and three vehicles.

Lovett also was in possession of 10 pills that are suspected to be hydrocodone, according to her arrest citation.

Doran initially gave police the name Sara Lyons, but later told jail staff that this was her sister’s name and she initially gave authorities the false name because she had a fugitive warrant against her out of Tennessee, Fulton wrote on her arrest citation.

Whitley District Judge Fred White entered not guilty pleas for all four defendants during their arraignments Monday in Whitley District Court.

White scheduled an Oct. 29 preliminary hearing in their cases, and appointed the public advocate’s office to represent each defendant.

Williamsburg Police Sgt. Brandon White, and Officers David Rowe and Dorman Patrick Jr. also assisted with the investigation.