A Lakeland woman was arrested on narcotics charges despite saying she was unaware of the over 40 grams of meth in her car.
An officer on patrol saw 51-year-old Christina Marie Cooley driving a red Toyota Camry out of the RaceTrac parking lot on U.S. Highway 27 around 7:05 p.m. on Wednesday, June 24, according to an arrest report from the Clermont Police Department.
As he watched, she ran a stop sign and crossed two lanes of traffic without using a turn signal. She entered the left-turn lane on Citrus Tower Boulevard and failed to notice the signal turning green. She eventually made the turn, only to slowly swerve from the center lane to the far right lane and back, according to the complaint.
Cooley was going so slowly that the vehicle behind her took the right lane. The officer could see her texting and driving from directly behind her. He then stopped her at U.S. Highway 27 and Legendary Boulevard, according to the report.
She spoke casually with the officer and stated that she had been distracted by her phone. However, the officer saw she was always looking around inside her vehicle, smiling awkwardly when answering questions, and not making eye contact. The officer requested permission to search her vehicle, and she placed her hand on her forehead, according to the report.
According to the report, Cooley appeared hesitant to respond and instead inquired as to why more officers were arriving on the site. She ultimately refused consent. But a K-9 unit was already on the scene, and a positive alert to the odor of narcotics meant her car would be checked anyhow.
When asked if she had anything illegal, she brought up her son’s marijuana vapes. She also reported that her boyfriend’s niece was caught in the vehicle for possessing methamphetamine, but no other drug user had used her vehicle since. According to the complaint, she was closely watching the officers as they began to investigate the interior.
They uncovered an orange-and-black computerized scale in a black backpack, along with the aforementioned vape pens. One of the officers then brought out a cigarette carton containing a bag of white tablets. According to the article, Cooley suggested that they were merely ibuprofen.
She also stated that law enforcement would find a burned marijuana cigarette in the carton. The bookbag belonged to her son, and she instructed him to remove it from her vehicle since she could face legal consequences for the contents. The officer questioned why she would continuously drive around knowing she could get in trouble, and she appeared dissatisfied. She emphasized that she had instructed her son to remove the items, according to the report.
The search continued, and they discovered a black-and-orange magnetic box with several baggies containing 40.78 grams of crystal methamphetamine. Cooley, who was now very concerned, inquired as to where the officers had found the box. They later reported that it was attached to the roof of her trunk and hidden by her things, according to the article.
The report noted that Cooley had already stated that everything in the trunk belonged to her. She had recently gone to her Lakeland storage unit because she was moving in with her boyfriend, and she had packed all of her possessions in the trunk. According to the report, she claimed not to have seen the box at the time, which the officer found unreasonable.
The officers also discovered three glass pipes with crystal residue and two black digital scales among Cooley’s belongings. According to the research, these were most likely used to smoke methamphetamine.
Cooley was eventually arrested on allegations of trafficking methamphetamine and possessing drug paraphernalia. She was booked into the Lake County Jail and bond was set at $51,000.
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