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Elkins man arrested on meth charge

Bell

Bell

ELKINS — A Randolph County man is behind bars after allegedly being found in possession of more than 15 grams of methamphetamine.

Christopher Michael Bell, 27, of Elkins, is charged with one felony count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. He is incarcerated at Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $50,000 cash or surety bond, set by Randolph County Chief Magistrate Ben Shepler.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Randolph County Magistrate Court, at approximately 9:42 p.m. on Saturday, Patrolman C.G. Boatwright, of the Elkins Police Department, was leaving a traffic stop in the Speedway parking lot along Harrison Avenue in Elkins when he saw a red Dodge Neon parked along Pleasant Avenue with a person leaning down to the window.

Upon seeing Boatwright, the person “rapidly got into the vehicle,” causing a traffic stop to be conducted, according to the complaint.

While speaking with the driver, later identified as Bell, Boatwright observed a glass pipe with residue on the drivers side floorboard of the vehicle. Boatwright asked Bell if there was anything else in the vehicle he should be aware of and Bell responded “Yes, I have a little bit of meth in my pocket,” the complaint states.

After asking Bell to exit the vehicle, Boatwright performed a pat-down search and felt a “large ball object” in Bell’s right front pant pocket, police said. When asked what the bulge was, Bell responded “the meth.”

Boatwright removed the object and located a clear plastic baggy containing an additional clear plastic bag holding a crystal-like substance that appeared to be methamphetamine, the complaint states.

Also in Bell’s pocket was another clear plastic baggy containing two full clear plastic baggies, eight cut corners of clear plastic baggies and four small plastic baggies with prints on them. Boatwright found two additional baggies containing what appeared to be methamphetamine in his right change pocket and left pant pocket, according to the complaint.

Boatwright told Bell “This is a lot of meth for personal use,” at which time he replied that he had been “selling some.” Inside Bell’s wallet, Boatwright found a large amount of “cash money,” later determined to be $806, police said.

Boatwright and Patrolman T.C. Bennett, also of the EPD, spoke with a female passenger in the car. The woman was asked to empty her pockets and did not have anything illegal in her possession, the complaint states.

Officers searched the vehicle and located a second glass pipe with white residue under the passenger seat and a black iPhone in the center console, both of which Bell said were his, police said.

The female was released and Bell was taken into custody at that time, according to court documents. Once back at the Elkins Police Department, Boatwright field-tested the substance, which tested positive as methamphetamine.

Boatwright also weighed the methamphetamine, which totaled 18.2 grams, according to the complaint.

If convicted, Bell could be sentenced to the state penitentiary for not less than one year nor more than 15 years, fined not more than $25,000, or both.

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