Investigators with the Pearl River County Sheriff’s Department netted a number of suspects on drug related charges during recent operations.
Pearl River County Sheriff David Allison said one of the cases involved 43-year-old Melissa Sanders of 52 Woodland Road, Lumberton, who was on probation with the Mississippi Department of Corrections for a 2014 arrest that involved the felony possession of a controlled substance when narcotics investigators arrested her on Nov. 1, 2016, for possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. Allison said both of those arrests involved methamphetamine.
After that, investigators continued to monitor Sanders, eventually purchasing methamphetamine from her three more times between November and her arrest on March 13 of this year, Allison said. She was arrested on that date for three counts of felony conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and three counts of sale of a controlled substance, Allison said.
In a separate case, investigators received information that Christopher J. Black, 26, of 144 Hickory Ridge, Picayune, was wanted by the Louisiana Department of Corrections was hiding at a home located at 78 Lemuel Jarrell Road in Picayune. Surveillance was set up at the home for several days until they saw Black on March 13. Deputies and investigators surrounded the home and took Black into custody without incident. During a search of his person investigators found heroin. Allison said Black, of 144 Hickory Ridge Road, Picayune, was arrested for the warrant out of St. Tammany Parish and for felony possession of a controlled substance.
Another case worked on March 23, resulted in the arrest of 59-year-old Sandra Cox of 26172 Bluegill Point, Wiggins, after a stop was conducted on the vehicle she was driving for the offense of careless driving along Interstate 59. Allison said that the investigators noticed some paraphernalia in plain view while speaking with Cox and her passenger, 35-year-old Jessica Falcon of 130 Browning Circle, Picayune. A check with the national crime database showed Cox had outstanding traffic warrants, leading the investigators to ask both occupants to exit the vehicle, Allison said. A search of the vehicle found syringes, suboxone wrappers, three doses of the drug and a spoon containing a residue. Also found in the search was the bottom of a can apparently used to melt the suboxone, Allison said.
Further investigation showed that both suspects were allegedly involved in the transfer of the drug, Allison said. Cox was arrested for the warrants, careless driving, driving while license suspended, possession of paraphernalia and felony transfer of a controlled substance, while Falcon was arrested for possession of paraphernalia and felony transfer of a controlled substance, Allison said.