SKOWHEGAN — A Somerset County deputy’s check-in with a U-Haul box truck driver parked in a large puddle of water led to an arrest Monday night.

After calling a detective and his police dog to the scene, officers eventually found Klonopin, morphine, Subutex and 36.18 grams of a “white crystal substance that tested positive for methamphetamines” in the vehicle, according to a Tuesday afternoon news release from Somerset County Sheriff Dale Lancaster. The officials also discovered a glass pipe and a digital scale with “a white powdery residue on it” in the truck. The incident occurred about 7:05 p.m. Monday.

The driver, Ted Eugene Ivey Jr., 38, of Littleton, ultimately was taken to the Somerset County Jail on two class B charges — unlawful trafficking of schedule W drugs and unlawful possession of schedule W drugs — two counts of a class C charge of unlawful possession of schedule W drugs and a class D charge of unlawful possession of schedule Y drugs. Ivey is being held in lieu of $10,000 bail, with further charges potentially forthcoming, according to Lancaster.

Deputy Logan Roberts first spotted the vehicle facing the Kennebec River on a dirt turn-off between the eddy and the state rest area on Canaan Road in Skowhegan. He approached the driver “to check if everything was okay with the operator,” according to the news release.

“As he was approaching the operator started stuffing unknown objects between the 2 seats in the center of the truck,” the release states. “When Deputy Roberts inquired what the objects were between the seats, the male denied any movement.”

Roberts requested the assistance of Detective David Cole and his Somerset County dog, Kojo, “because of the suspicious actions of the driver,” Lancaster wrote. Ivey allegedly maintained that there was nothing illegal in the truck.

“While Detective Cole and his K-9 were doing the search of the outside of the truck, Kojo alerted on the presence of illegal drugs inside the vehicle,” according to the news release. Kojo’s response led to a probable cause search that uncovered the drugs and led to Ivey’s arrest.

Lancaster indicated that Ivey said he did not have a prescription for Subutex, a narcotic. He did not provide further detail on the morphine — also a narcotic — or the Klonopin, a sedative.

At the scene, Roberts found that Ivey’s license had been revoked and that he had habitual offender status. Later, a criminal history check revealed prior drug possession and furnishing convictions on Ivey’s record, according to Lancaster.

The Somerset County District Attorney’s Office will review the case going forward, Lancaster noted.

Class B crimes are punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine, Class C crimes are punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, and class D misdemeanors are punishable by up to one year in county jail and a $2,000 fine.

 

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