Last week a drug investigation in Martin County lead to the arrest of four people and the seizure of methamphetamine’s and heroin. Just before 6:30 p.m. this past Friday the Martin County Sheriff’s Department acting on information that methamphetamine was entering Martin County for distribution, set up surveillance. The authorities stopped the two suspects, 43-year old John Kidwell, and 40-year old Crystal Walker both of Bedford, on a county road East of Shoals and the two were detained. More officers arrived on the scene to assist in the search of the vehicle along with a certified K9 Officer that conducted a free air sniff of the vehicle. The K9 crawled under the front of the vehicle and alerted the police to the presence of drugs. Officers searched the vehicle, and found approximately two ounces of methamphetamine, and approximately 1 gram of what is believed to have been heroin. Martin County authorities contacted a Detective from the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office’s Drug Task Force, to secure a search warrant for the suspect’s residence in Lawrence County. Upon attaining the search warrant Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office found more amounts of methamphetamine and heroin. On Saturday a following investigation led the Martin County Sheriff’s Office to organize another surveillance operation near a shelter house in the Martin State Forest, east of Shoals. Deputies say at around 6:15 p.m. they identified the suspected drug traffickers in the shelter house parking lot as 38-year old Jason Wilson of Gosport and 37-year old Sarah Smith of Martinsville. Deputies identified themselves to the suspects as law enforcement and ordered them to exit the vehicle. An Indiana State Police trooper and other deputies arrived to aid in the securing of the suspects. Once again a K9 officer conducted a free air sniff of the vehicle and indicated the presence of drugs. Authorities found a quarter of a pound of methamphetamine in the floor board. All four suspects were booked into the Martin County Jail and charged with felony counts of Dealing Methamphetamine, Possession of Methamphetamine, Maintaining a Common Nuisance and a Misdemeanor Count of Possession of Paraphernalia.
