A Belleview woman and her Lady Lake companion were arrested on narcotics charges after being found with marijuana and methamphetamine.
According to an arrest report from the Fruitland Park Police Department, an officer on patrol saw 48-year-old Tonya Joann Bowers and 47-year-old William Frank Rysavy in a red Ford Focus driving north on U.S. Highway 27/441 around 6:40 p.m. Thursday.
A search of the vehicle’s license plate revealed that the registered owner had a suspended license with multiple active suspensions. The officer stopped the vehicle at North Dixie Avenue and asked the driver, Rysavy, for his license. He stated that he did not have one, but the car was experiencing mechanical problems. He hesitantly stated that he was driving for Bowers, according to the report.
A subsequent check of his license revealed that it had been suspended. He was designated a persistent traffic offender in 2005, and his license had not been reinstated, according to the report.
With probable cause that a crime was being committed, the officer used a K-9 to search for narcotics. The K-9 detected the stench of narcotics, and Rysavy was requested to exit the vehicle. The officer held the door open for Rysavy, who attempted to close it, and repeatedly instructed him to walk to the front of his patrol vehicle, according to the report.
A later examination of the vehicle revealed a plastic baggie with methamphetamine between the driver’s seat and the door. On the passenger side, there was a little blue pouch on the floor. According to the complaint, this included another little plastic wrapper with suspected methamphetamine as well as several sliced plastic straws with residue.
A black backpack could also be found on the floorboards. Inside were six small baggies, each containing a similar amount of marijuana. The blue pouch included a seventh baggie with a little lesser amount of marijuana, according to the report.
When asked about the finds, Rysavy stated that the bag of methamphetamine near the driver’s seat belonged to him. He claimed to know nothing about the marijuana save what was in the blue pouch, according to the report.
Bowers then told law enforcement that the black backpack was hers. A woman named “Stephanie” had handed Rysavy the marijuana to sell. According to the report, she offered to reveal the person’s last name in exchange for not being detained.
Bowers was arrested on the accusation of possessing marijuana with intent to deliver. She was booked into Lake County Jail and released after posting a $2,500 bond.
Rysavy was arrested for possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, and driving with a suspended license. The California native was taken into jail on a $11,000 bond.
He was also detained in December 2025 with 20 baggies containing drug residue.
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