A Belleview man was arrested on drug charges when officers found methamphetamine in his wallet during a traffic stop.
An officer was patrolling a high crime area in Oxford when he saw 56-year-old George Raymond Fetzer and an unidentified woman take notice of his presence around 11:20 p.m. Wednesday, according to an arrest report from the Wildwood Police Department.
From inside Wawa, located at 11770 N U.S. 301, they looked in the officer’s direction multiple times. This behavior raised his suspicion, as he knew through experience it was uncommon for law-abiding citizens. So, he watched as their vehicle, a white 2005 Chevrolet Silverado, left Wawa by turning westbound onto County Road 466, the report said.
The vehicle then failed to use a turn signal within 100 ft of turning right onto County Road 201. The report noted this happened immediately after the officer pulled up behind them, raising even more suspicion due to the evasive driving. He continued to follow the vehicle until conducting a traffic stop just west of U.S. Hwy. 301, the report said.
When told why he was stopped, Fetzer stated one of his passengers tried to tell him County Roda 201 was not a road, hence the abrupt turn without using a signal. He and the other occupants continued to show signs of deception during this conversation, including not making eye contact and being overly talkative, the report said.
This caused the officer to call for backup and a K-9 unit to check for narcotics. With a positive alert to the presence of such, the occupants were removed so the vehicle could be searched. This led to the discovery of Fezter’s wallet which contained a folded one-dollar bill with methamphetamine, the report said.
Fetzer subsequently claimed owernshio of the wallet but refused to identify the narcotics inside. He only stated it looked like “ice,” the street name for methamphetamine, the report said.
He was arrested on charges of possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia as well as issued a written traffic warning for the unsignaled turn. He was transported to Lake County Jail and released after posting $3,000 bond.