A Fruitland Park man was arrested after police discovered methamphetamine in a cigarette pack.
Scott Allen Hutcheson, 47, was observed jaywalking across Dixie Avenue at around 11:36 p.m. Tuesday, according to an arrest report from the Fruitland Park Police Department. A clearly marked crosswalk was about 50 feet away from where Hutcheson crossed the street.
An officer stopped Hutcheson and asked him if he had anything illegal on his person, to which he said he did not. He was also asked to empty his pockets. Hutcheson removed two “305” cigarette packs from his pocket and placed them on the ground in front of him, the report said.
One of the cigarette packs appeared to be empty, while the other was nearly full of cigarettes, the report said. The officer asked Hutcheson if he could look inside the packs, at which point Hutcheson pointed at the empty pack and stated that it was already on the ground when he was stopped.
The officer did not find anything illegal in the full pack of cigarettes. However, a plastic baggie with one gram of crystalized substance was found inside the “empty” pack. This would later test positive for methamphetamine, the report said.
Hutcheson stated he found the pack on the ground outside of his mother’s house but did not know what was in it. His story changed a short while later to say that he suspected the substance to be cocaine, and he was going to talk to his brother about it. He conceded that he was aware an illegal substance was in the baggie.
Hutcheson was arrested and charged with possession of methamphetamine, as well as issued a written warning for the pedestrian violation. He was transported to the Lake County Jail and released after posting $2,000 bond.