A Columbus man is facing first-degree felony cocaine charges after a local traffic stop revealed thousands of dollars’ worth of cocaine.
The Union County Grand Jury has indicted Timothy Gilbert Ferguson, 39, of 2480 Peekskill Dr., Columbus, charging him with one count of first-degree felony possession of cocaine. According to court documents, on May 15, Fergusson was the passenger in a vehicle stopped at Route 4 and U.S. 33 for failing to stop at a stop sign. The deputy who initiated the stop smelled alcohol, but did not believe the driver was impaired. The deputy noted that the passenger was uncooperative.
“As they were finishing up issuing the citation, the canine arrived,” Phillips said.
He said the dog, which came from Delaware County, alerted to the car and police initiated a search.
Phillips said investigators found two different batches of cocaine, one about 13 grams and the other about 27.25 grams. Investigators determined the cocaine belonged to Ferguson.
“It is a significant amount,” Phillips said. “It is not cartel numbers, but it is a significant amount for an individual.”
Detective Seth McDowell, with the Union County Sheriff’s Office, said 40 grams of coke has a street value of roughly $3,500-$4,000.
He said the number of doses “depends on how they’re using it.”
He said a user will often buy “a gram or so at a time and use it a day, roughly.”
Phillips said Union County is starting to see a resurgence in cocaine cases. He said drugs are cyclical and come and go in popularity. He said that as law enforcement and law makers begin to concentrate on that drug, it pushes users to another drug. Phillips compared it to squeezing a balloon.
He said that when he began as a prosecutor, cocaine was the drug of choice for many. He said drug abuse moved from cocaine to prescription pills to heroin, then Fentanyl and methamphetamines.
“That’s not to say that those other drugs ever fall off entirely, it is just degrees of what you see more of,” Phillips said.
He said some drugs become popular because of availability, cost or their effect but he doesn’t really know why cocaine is making a comeback.
What doesn’t change, Phillips said, is the important impact traffic officers have in the war on drugs. He said traffic interdiction is “very important in terms of combatting drug abuse.”
If convicted, Ferguson could face as many as 10 years in prison.
Also indicted was:
– Eric D. Wilgus, 52, of Columbus. Wilgus is charged with one count of possession of cocaine. On May 7, Wilgus was driving west on U.S. 33 near U.S. 42. He was stopped by a Union County Sheriff’s Deputy on suspicion of driving under the influence. Wilgus refused to take a breathalyzer test and he was cited for operating a vehicle while intoxicated. He was also cited for driving on a suspended license.
When law enforcement officials searched the 2003 Jeep Wilgus was driving, they found cocaine as well as what Phillips termed “a significant amount of alleged marijuana.”
If convicted on the drug charges, Wilgus could face as many as 12 months in prison.
– Dejuan M. Hutson, 30, of Columbus. Hutson is charged with one count of possession of cocaine.
According to court documents, about 1:01 a.m., April 17, Hutson was driving east on U.S. 33 in Millcreek Township. Hutson was pulled over for speeding. Philips said, at times Hutson was allegedly traveling 96 miles per hour on the freeway.
When Hutson stopped, his vehicle was searched. Investigators found alleged marijuana as well as cocaine, according to court documents.
If convicted on the cocaine charges, Hutson could face as many as 12 months in prison.