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LCSO nets $5 million drug bust
Sikes credits proper training in landing 17.9 pounds of crystal meth on I-95
1002MethBust
A routine traffic stop by the Liberty County Sheriffs Office netted 17.9 pounds of crystal meth with an estimated street value of $5 million Wednesday afternoon on I-95. LSCO Sheriff Steve Sikes credits the intense and ongoing training of his officers, which led to the proper questioning and consented search of the vehicle. - photo by Photo provided by the LCSO

Liberty County Sheriff’s Office deputies conducted a routine traffic stop Wednesday on Interstate 95 and ended up uncovering 17.9 pounds of crystal meth with an estimated street value of $5 million.

Liberty County Sheriff Steve Sikes chalked up the drug bust to the specialized training his traffic division officers receive, saying they followed training methods by the book, which aided them in discovering the drugs after the driver they stopped consented to a vehicle search.

The incident took place on the southbound side of I-95 near exit 69, where, according to Capt. David Edwards, a deputy pulled over a 2004 gray Honda for speeding.

The driver, Francisco Nery, 27, who stopped his car at mile marker 68, was accompanied by a female passenger, Maria Diego, 30. According to the incident report, Nery is from Festus, Mo., and Diego is from Plano, Ill.

"Our men were doing routine patrol on I-95. … This guy was speeding and he was pulled over. … Our guys asked the right questions and got permission to do a search," Sikes said. "Our officers discovered the drugs and they did an exceptional job."

Sikes said that when the deputy found the meth in the car, officers from the Multi Agency Crack Enforcement Drug Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Agency were called to the scene.

"Our guys spotted certain things in the car, asked the driver to step out and asked him a few questions," Edwards said. "Certain things didn’t add up, and they wound up getting consent to search the vehicle and found a big quantity of drugs. It was located throughout the car … backseats and the majority of it was in the trunk."

LCSO Chief Deputy Keith Moran said the deputies detained the suspects after they came across the first bag of meth and then continued their search, which turned up several additional packages.

Sikes and Moran both said that, as far as they know, in terms of monetary value, the bust is the largest ever made in Liberty County.

"The DEA was notified by Capt. Edwards’ team as was the MACE team, and they responded and took control of the investigation," Moran said. "You hear about arrests involving crystal meth, which is probably the worst drug that is out on the streets today, and you hear about different quality levels, differing from the stuff made in bathtubs versus others that have a higher quality. But the indication from (the DEA) was that the bust was high-quality stuff."

The chief deputy said the DEA requested that the LCSO file charges of trafficking a controlled substance, methamphetamine.

Sikes said warrants immediately were taken out against both suspects. The two already have appeared in magistrate court and both were denied bond.

"The DEA is the lead agency now due to the quantities of the drug and seriousness of the offense," Moran said. "They are in Liberty County Jail now, but next week the DEA will go before the federal grand jury to obtain indictments against them on federal charges, and then they will be transferred to federal custody."

Sikes said Nery and Diego could face 25-year mandatory minimum prison terms just on state charges. They also would face federal time if indicted.

"That quantity of drugs was going somewhere," Sikes said. "We feel like we’ve helped our citizens and we’ve helped keep those drugs from reaching their final destination, whether it was here or elsewhere. This is just another feather in our hat, and it’s all due to continuous training. Obviously, the amount of training these officers got prepared them to ask the right questions and do the right things."

The sheriff said the traffic division is comprised of three deputies, who recently attended an advanced DEA traffic school training session in Atlanta. The course, which taught the officers to look for certain behaviors, equipped the officers with the skills that help them identify problems and make arrests, Sikes said.

He said he would like to see all his deputies receive more training to keep up with changes in the law and technological advancements in crime fighting, which are becoming more sophisticated.

"It’s not free training, but it’s good quality training that we constantly need to help our deputies to do the best they can for the citizens of Liberty County," Sikes said.

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HPD Reports
crime scene

From Hinesville Police Department reports. Editor’s note: Due to computer issues at the city, reports have been unavailable in recent weeks. They are back. Our thanks to the HPD clerks who provide them. We’re catching up as quickly as possible.

Burglary, etc: A man called 911 on Feb. 27 because he was watching his White Circle home getting burglarized. The man said his alarm system had an app that showed live video on his phone, and he was “viewing three males inside his residence,” as he talked to 911.
Police responded, caught two of them inside the house and found the third guy “hiding behind a tree,” the report said.
Detectives are investigating.

Public indecency: An officer was sent to Lowes around 4:30 p.m. March 12 in reference to a disturbance involving a man and a woman.
The woman, a Lowe’s employee, said she had just got back from her lunch break when she saw the man “looking around at items on a shelf.”
The woman said she asked him if he needed help finding anything and he held up something, then said “I have found everything I need,” the report said. “(he) then placed his arms around (the employee) to hug her and then kissed (her) neck. (She) then moved away from (him) and told him to have a nice day and attempted to walk away from (the man). (He) then began to follow (her), stating ‘I would lick you up and down’ and ‘you better hide in an office.’ (She) then spoke with manager and called 911.’”
The man told police he thought he recognized the woman “and stated to me that he had previously had a relationship with her approximately two years ago. (He) was unable to recall (her) name while on scene.”
The woman told police “she has never seen, nor spoken to (the man) before today.”
The woman was given a case number and told what to do. The man was allowed to leave.

Indecent exposure: A Berkshire Terrace man reported he went outside his house around 6:40 a.m. and “observed a man who appeared to be intoxicated, peeing on his truck and trailer.”
The complainant said the man “fully exposed his penis while he was peeing. When (complainant) asked him to stop the man told him to ‘shut the (bleep) up.’ (Complainant) advised the man he would call police. (Complainant) advised his young son was standing outside during the incident. He said the man got into a 1996 black Buick and drove away, almost hitting cars that were parked in the driveway.”
The complainant said he did not want to press charges, “he said he wanted to report the incident because the man did not stop peeing when he asked him too.”
The complainant said he’d seen the man before “come and go” from a nearby apartment. The officer met with the resident of that apartment, who said the man was a cousin and did not pee on the complainant’s trailer.

Identity theft: A man went to HPD on March 21 to report that when he went to get a driver’s history for a commercial driver’s license, he found several citations on the history that weren’t his. “(He) stated he noticed someone was issued four citations in Arkansas and one citation in Jacksonville, Florida,” and during the time the Arkansas tickets were written he was in locked up in Georgia.
“(He) advised that he was not incarcerated when the citation in Jacksonville, Florida was issued but he was not in Florida at the time. (He) was unable to leave the state of Georgia due to being on felony probation.”
It gets worse.
“(He) told me that he attempted to file his income taxes for the first time ever and he was rejected due to owing the IRS money, $20,000. (He) stated he spoke to a representative for the IRS and he was informed that taxes were filed in his name in 2014 and the return was $1,3000. (He) advised he did not file taxes in 2013 and he was still incarcerated at the time.”
The man then told the officer he thinks his brother “got the citations and filed income taxes using his information. (He) believed his brother obtained his Social Security number and other demographics when he was incarcerated.”
The man said he talked to his brother, who said he paid all the tickets. “(His) brother also told him on a different occasion that he knew his date of birth and (SSN). (He) advised he told his brother that it was not OK to use his name due to him getting his life together and attempting to drive commercial vehicles.”
The guy said he didn’t have his brother’s address. He chose to fill out an identity theft packet.

Simple battery, theft by taking: An officer was sent around 2 a.m. March 20 to the Baymont Inn regarding a disturbance. There, a woman said she was being “grabbed and pulled” by a man when she told him to leave her motel room. She said they began arguing when he accused her of stealing $100.
The man claimed he met the woman on a dating website and when they “started having sex she informed him that it would cost $100.” He told her he wasn’t going to pay her, “got dressed and realized the five $20s in his pants pocket were missing. He accused (her) of stealing his money.”
The officer asked the woman if she stole the man’s money and she replied, “No, I work hard for my money.”
Both were given a case number and told how to get a warrant.

Robbery: A woman called HPD March 15 to report she was home when her estranged husband came to her apartment “and asked her to come outside to talk to him,” a report said.
“She stated that she stepped outside thinking that he was going to be civil, though she recently filed for divorce from him. As she stepped outside, he grabbed her necklace off her neck and then ran down the stairwell and out to the parking lot.”
The woman said he stood by his vehicle a minute, then drove off as police arrived. Officers checked the area but had no luck finding the man.

Burglary: Police were sent to a Malibu Drive address on March 13 regarding missing firearms and ransacked rooms. The homeowners were at work and got home to find handguns and rifles missing, as well as video games.
It appeared the home may have been broken into through the attic. Police found footprints and other evidence, and the case is under investigation.

Recovered stolen trailer: A U-Haul employee was inventorying equipment on March 14 when she discovered a trailer that had been reported stolen in Florida on Dec. 26. “She stated someone had backed the trailer into a parking stall along with the other trailers sometime during the night.”

Theft: In February, the maintenance man at Cypress Bend Mobile Home Park reported that “22 air conditioning unit disconnect boxes were stolen from various lots… He stated he began receiving calls from people that their air conditioning units were not working.”
The boxes contain small pieces of copper. He didn’t know who swiped them, but valued the total at about $341.

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