By Pat Culverhouse –
Traveling at a high rate of speed on Interstate 20 isn’t the only way to catch the attention of a Minden police officer and a Baton Rouge man is now facing multiple drug charges as proof.
Chief of Police Jared McIver said Officer Cody James noticed a vehicle moving at 50 miles per hour in the 70 mile zone around 2 a.m. Tuesday and became concerned the driver might be impaired or fatigued.
After observing the vehicle cross the traffic fog line on several occasions, the officer performed a traffic stop as it exited at the 47-mile marker. While questioning the driver, 43-year-old David Michael Swanson, the officer noticed slurred speech and red eyes.
Swanson was asked for permission to search the vehicle and refused. Minden PD Officer Kendale Booker and his K9, Reef, were called to the scene for an open-air sniff. Reef reportedly alerted positively near the driver’s door and front fender of the vehicle.
A search of the vehicle uncovered approximately 104 grams of suspected methamphetamines in three separate baggies, approximately 10 grams of suspected marijuana, four different types of CDS Sch. II pills in one container, a set of digital scales, plastic baggies, several torch lighters and $1,474 in cash.
McIver said Swanson is being held at Bayou Dorcheat Correctional Center facing the following charges:
- Possession of CDs Sch. II (methamphetamines) with intent to distribute.
- Possession of CDS Sch. II (Alprazolam).
- Possession of CDS Sch. II (Dextroamphetamin), two counts.
- Possession of CDS Sch. II (Methylphenidate).
- Possession of CDS Schl I (marijuana) under 14 grams.
- Possession of drug paraphernalia.
- Improper lane usage.
His total bond has been set at $26,000.
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.
