A traffic stop for speeding and stop sign reportedly resulted in the driver and passenger being arrested on felony drug charges.
The driver, Yancy Cornell Koonce, 30, of Hot Springs, was taken into custody shortly before 11:30 p.m. on two felony counts of possession of a controlled substance, one count punishing up to 20 years in prison and the other with a maximum penalty. He was sentenced to six years in prison. , misdemeanor charges of possession of marijuana and driving while license suspended.
Passenger Takeze Raphael Gordon, 24, also of Hot Springs, was also taken into custody and charged with one count of felony possession of a controlled substance, marijuana, which carries a maximum sentence of six years in prison.
Both men were subsequently released on $6,000 bail and Gordon on $2,500 bail and are scheduled to appear in Garland County District Court on June 7. Koonce was convicted in 2017 of theft by receipt of a firearm and sentenced to five years of supervised probation, according to court records. Mr. Gordon has had a pending felony drug charge since his arrest on October 27th, and on February 9th, he was convicted of a misdemeanor charge of third-degree domestic assault and sentenced to one year of probation. ing.
According to a probable cause affidavit, on Sunday around 11:15 p.m., Officer Joseph Reichard of the Hot Springs Police Department was on patrol when a black Dodge Charger ran a stop sign at West St. Louis Avenue and Main Street. It is said that he witnessed it. He followed it and stopped it in the 300 block of Main, noting it was going 40 mph in a 25 mph zone.
He contacted the driver, Koonce, and explained why he had stopped, but Koonce said it was his fault. Reichard noticed a strong odor of marijuana coming from inside the car, and upon questioning him, Koonce admitted he had smoked marijuana and handed Reichard the remains of a marijuana “roach.”
Koonce's confession gave probable cause to search the vehicle, so both Koonce and his passenger, Gordon, were ejected, the affidavit said. An unopened bottle containing 589.4 grams (more than 20 ounces) of promethazine hydrochloride, a Schedule V controlled substance, was located in the center console. Koonce later allegedly admitted the bottle was his.
A plastic bag containing approximately 235.6 grams (more than 8 ounces) of marijuana was found under the passenger seat where Gordon was sitting. Gordon was charged because he was sitting there and had “ready access to marijuana.”
In addition to the felonies and misdemeanors, Koonce also received written warnings for failing to stop, running a red light, speeding and illegally using an auxiliary light.