An Oxford man with methamphetamine was apprehended near an entrance to The Villages.
Levi Brandon Cole, 38, was traveling in a 2005 Chevrolet Suburban shortly before midnight Tuesday eastbound on State Road 44 at Buena Vista Boulevard when a Sumter County sheriff’s deputy discovered the license plate on the Suburban was assigned to a trailer and had expired in 2019.
When the deputy approached the vehicle during a traffic stop, Cole was seated in the front passenger seat and a woman was behind the wheel. Cole claimed he owned the vehicle, which was unregistered, and was planning to get it registered but did not have the money to do so, according to an arrest report.
The deputy learned that Cole had actually been driving the vehicle prior to the traffic stop and he has been classified a habitual traffic offender. The deputy noticed great deal of movement in the vehicle prior to the traffic stop.
A bag containing methamphetamine was found in the vehicle along with drug paraphernalia.
Cole was arrested on felony charges of driving while license suspended and possession of methamphetamine, as well as other misdemeanor charges. He was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $8,500 bond.