TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – Three men were arrested this week as members of the Winter Haven Police Department worked to get trafficking amounts of fentanyl, meth and oxycodone off the street.
According to police, around 7:40 p.m. Saturday, Douglas Smith, 50, was riding a motorized bicycle when he ran a stop sign at the intersection of 24th Street SW and Avenue D SW.
Officers attempted to stop Smith, but he continued on until he fell off the bike.
Police said he attempted to pedal away, since the bicycle wouldn’t start back up, but he was stopped and detained after a short foot chase.
Police found a zipped bag on the bicycle with 5.7 grams of fentanyl, as well as meth. According to police in comparison, .2 grams of fentanyl is potentially lethal.
He was booked into the Polk County Jail and charged with trafficking fentanyl, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting without violence.
On Wednesday, police said 70-year-old Philip Arter was driving a Toyota along Hwy 17 at Cypress Gardens Boulevard when he was seen without a seatbelt.
A traffic stop was conducted and police said a K-9 did an open-air sniff of the vehicle.
The K-9 officer alerted to narcotics and when officers searched the vehicle, they found a bag containing 5.3 grams of oxycodone pills, as well as .9 grams of meth.
Arter was booked in to the jail for possession of oxycodone, possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Also on Wednesday, police said Juan Lamas, 47, was seen riding his bicycle on the wrong side of the road, toward oncoming traffic in the area of 7th Street SW and Post Avenue SW.
When officers approached him, police said Lamas dropped a baggie, which landed next to the back wheel of the bicycle.
According to police, they found .8 grams of fentanyl.
As officers attempted to handcuff Lamas, he tried pulling away and rammed his head continuously into one of the officers.
He was taken to the ground and put in handcuffs.
Lamas was booked into the Polk County Jail for possession of fentanyl, resisting arrest with violence, possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.
