By Pat Culverhouse

Stopping on private property in an apparent attempt to take a few items that didn’t belong to him has cost an Arkansas man a stopover in the parish prison on drug-related charges.

Jeffrey Charles Darner, 44, a resident of Bradley, Arkansas, is sitting in Bayou Dorcheat Correctional Center where he was booked for possession of CDS Sch. II (methamphetamines) and possession of drug paraphernalia. His bond has been set at $2,501.

Sheriff Jason Parker said Maj. Bobby Igo III was called Monday afternoon to property on LA Hwy. 159 north of Minden in reference to a suspicious vehicle on private land. 

During questioning, Darner admitted he did not have permission to be on the property where he had been seen apparently attempting to remove items from a downed utility pole.

Darner reportedly denied Maj. Igo permission to search his vehicle, and Minden PD Officer Kendale Booker and his K9 partner Reef were called to the scene. During an outside sniff search, Reef reportedly gave a positive alert to the presence of narcotics.

When confronted with the K9’s response, Darner reportedly admitted he had a baggie of methamphetamine plus used syringes in his pickup. A search uncovered the methamphetamines in the center console of the truck, a glass pipe used for smoking methamphetamines in the sunglass holder, and three used needles throughout the vehicle.

This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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