Muncie police used a six-month surveillance and tips from neighbors to build a case against a couple that allegedly ran a drug ring from their house, selling heroin, crystal meth, cocaine and marijuana. Details of the case remain murky, but four suspects are now facing state and federal drug charges.
Investigators say that they watched the suspects’ house for six months and allegedly saw drug deals happening daily. During the surveillance, police collected tips from neighbors who claim to have seen the same activity. When police entered the house, they allegedly found four firearms, one of which was tracked to a burglary in Anderson, Indiana, earlier this year. Police were not able to make an immediate connection between the Muncie suspects and the Anderson suspect. The couple that occupied the house was alleged to be the main dealers of the drug ring. Two other males were arrested during the raid. All four suspects face drug charges.
Police valued drugs seized in the raid as exceeding $20,000. Muncie police described Indianapolis and Dayton as a “big highway” in the local drug trade. Once the drugs arrive in Muncie, dealers from smaller communities come to either buy drugs for their own used or for redistribution.
Accounts of the arrests did not specify whether police had obtained a search warrant or the factual basis for any such warrant. Procedural defects in a police search can often provide a successful defense or help leverage a negotiation in a plea agreement. Anyone facing drug charges may wish to consult an experienced criminal defense attorney for advice on how the facts and law of the case may affect potential defense strategies.
Source: Fox 59, “Drugs, guns and cash seized during bust at Muncie home,” Lindsey Eaton, April 18, 2018