BPS catches woman with meth and another with outstanding warrants
Published 4:55 pm Tuesday, May 8, 2018
On Friday afternoon, Bainbridge Public Safety was dispatched to a traffic accident, where they charged the driver with possession of methamphetamines and found the passenger with a warrant for arrest out of Panama City.
The driver, Amber Silva collided with Richard Elmore on Dothan Road near Jone’s Mobile Home after missing a turn and attempting to overcorrect.
Sgt. Toby Miller was called to the scene and began interviewing Silva about what happened, when he noticed Silva’s over exaggeration of events and frantic hand waving. He observed Silva become increasingly nervous when speaking and trying to put herself between Sgt. Miller and her vehicle.
Sgt. Miller questioned if either driver had any passengers in the vehicle. Silva stated she did, but they had to walk to Jone’s Mobile Home to get something to drink. Sgt. Miller explained that it was not common for passengers to leave the scene of the accident unless something was being attempted to dispose of or someone had some type of arrest warrant.
Sgt. Miller had the passengers return. The first passenger, Scelfo, had a conflicting story of what Silva had previously told him, and she became suspicious of Sgt. Miller’s questioning and began claiming she didn’t know the other passenger, later identified as Lutz.
Lutz promised Sgt. Miller she didn’t mean any harm by walking away from the scene. Sgt. Miller had her return to the car, and asked E-911 to run her information. Lutz was wanted out of Panama City for probation violation, and was placed under arrest.
Before leaving, Lutz requested her items from Silva’s car. Silva passed Lutz the belongings in a pillowcase that had a strong odor of marijuana. Sgt. Miller then secured Lutz in his patrol car and began searching Silva’s vehicle. He found a pink box containing crystallized substances, a book bag containing partially burnt hand-rolled cigarettes with green leafy residue, four used syringes with liquid, a heavy metal spoon and bluish-white paste.
Scelfo and Silva were also placed under arrest and transported back to Bainbridge Public Safety Headquarters.
Silva was charged with felony possession of methamphetamines.