Three men from the Southern Tier are facing felony level drug charges after Livingston County Sheriff’s deputies found them in possession of more than a pound of marijuana and other drugs on Interstate 390.
On March 11, Deputy Michael Wade stopped a vehicle on the highway after witnessing it commit a traffic violation.
Wade found the vehicle to be occupied by three individuals and came to suspect they were involved in drug activity after observing the odor of marijuana and seeing what he suspected to be marijuana crumbs on the driver’s lap.
Wade called for backup with deputies Matthew Thomas and Jason Butterbrodt subsequently arrived at the scene to assist.
With his K9 partner, Hondo, Wade searched the vehicle and found more than a pound of marijuana and about four grams of cocaine.
The three men were then arrested.
The driver, Canisteo resident Jason A. Quick, 35, and two passengers, 26-year-old Marcus J. Ruckdeschel of Nunda and 19-year-old Dylan M. Lew from Portageville, were charged with criminal possession of marijuana in the third degree, a felony.
Lew was also charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fourth degree, a class C felony.
The charges could be increased depending on the exact weight of the seized drugs, which will be determined at a crime lab.
The three men were turned over to deputies at the Livingston County Jail for processing and pre-arraignment detention.
They were later arraigned in Avon Town Court before Justice Jeannie Michalski, who remanded all three to the custody of the Sheriff on the $1,000 cash or $2,500 bond, the same amount recommended by the Livingston County District Attorney’s Office.
credit:thelcn.com