2 accused of trafficking narcotics after reckless driving stop in Punta Gorda

Writer: Carolina Guzman
Published: Updated:
Credit: The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office

A man and woman have been arrested for allegedly possessing trafficking amounts of drugs after deputies stopped them for reckless driving in Punta Gorda.

According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, just before 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, they received a call regarding a reckless driver in the area of Tuckers Grade Boulevard and Tamiami Trail.

A deputy found the light green pickup truck with Georgia tags and observed the vehicle failing to maintain its lane, so the deputy pulled the truck over.

The driver, 37-year-old Christopher James Smith, was reportedly slurring his words and could not hold a coherent conversation with the deputy.

The deputy then asked Smith to step out of the vehicle and requested EMS to come and medically clear him.

Smith’s passenger, 39-year-old Ashley Elaine Winters, remained inside the vehicle. 

A K-9 unit also responded to the scene and conducted a free-air sniff of the truck, providing an alert to the presence of drugs inside.

During the search of the pickup, deputies found a variety of narcotics and paraphernalia, including: 

  • 3.5g of crack cocaine
  • 1.8g of fentanyl 
  • .3g of MDMA
  • 26.7g of methamphetamine
  • 192.7g of marijuana
  • .1g of oxycodone
  • 102 whole and 8 half tablets of clenbuterol
  • 55g of THC gummies
  • 3 orange suboxone tablets
  • 2 needles loaded with liquid
  • Digital scale and empty baggies

Additionally, deputies located multiple cards (medical marijuana, identifications, social security and VA cards) that did not belong to Smith but were found to be in his possession.

Winters identified items that belonged to her, which also contained narcotics. Winters was found to be on felony probation out of Lee County for two counts of possession of a controlled substance.

Both Smith and Winters were placed under arrest and transported to the Charlotte County Jail.

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