Lee County Sheriff’s Office makes two drug busts this week

LEESBURG — Lee County Sheriff Reggie Rachals expressed pride on Thursday for recent narcotics arrests made in the county on Thursday.

Officials with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said that the law enforcement agency’s Unit Patrol and Narcotics divisions responded to calls and arrested Wallace Miller, Julie Miller and Justin Jaleel Scott on various drug and firearm charges following two separate incidents on Sunday and Tuesday.

Deputies with the Uniform Patrol Division responded to the home of Wallace Miller and Julie Miller in east Lee County about a possible home invasion Tuesday afternoon. Officials with the Narcotics Division said the deputies worked with investigators and executed a search warrant at the residence that evening.

Investigators seized around 200 pills of various Schedule II and IV controlled substances, eight firearms — four handguns and four rifles — marijuana and drug-related objects. Officials said Wallace Miller and Julie Miller were arrested and booked into Lee County Jail.

Rachals said the Miller residence was on the agency’s radar during the home invasion report, but calls from “nosy neighbors” about the pair’s involvement in using and distributing illegal prescription medication helped lead to the arrests.

“We received numerous complaints, also, from citizens of Lee County and other places,” Rachals said. “These kinds of calls do help when they come in. If you’ve got some suspicious activity, call us and let us investigate it.”

Wallace Miller and Julie Miller are charged with:

— Possession of a Schedule II controlled substance with intent to distribute (amphetamine, dextroamphetamine and methylphenidate hydrochloride);

— Possession of a Schedule IV controlled substance with intent to distribute (alprazolam);

— Possession of firearms during the commission of a felony;

— Possession of marijuana of less than one ounce;

— Possession of drug-related objects.

The street value of the seized firearms was valued at approximately $2,600, while the street value of the seized drugs was valued at around $600, officials said.

Prescription fentanyl patches were one of the drugs seized from the residence. Asked how often the county sees fentanyl cases, an official with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said the office receives many complaints about how some people abuse fentanyl alongside other narcotics.

“It’s obvious; we know now that heroin distributors are combining (fentanyl) with raw heroin to increase the effectiveness of the dosage of it,” the official said. “This is actually fentanyl patches that were prescribed by a doctor. This is, to my knowledge, our first occasion of the city’s fentanyl patches being used and possessed illegally.

“But we get complaints and reports of fentanyl quite frequently now. I’d say that most of our overdose deaths are probably attributed to that as well.”

Around 4:30 a.m. on Sunday, officials said Uniform Patrol deputies responded to calls about a suspicious vehicle stuck in the mud between two condominiums off of U.S. Highway 19 South. When approached by deputies, officials said Scott gave a false name and fled the scene on foot.

The officers caught up to Scott after finding him hiding in a dumpster at a nearby business. After the deputies arrested and booked him into Lee County Jail, officials said they found the following in his vehicle:

— Approximately a half-pound of marijuana, contained in eight separate bags and packaged for sale;

— Around 1.7 ounces of methamphetamine, contained in three separate bags and packaged for sale;

— A small amount of heroin;

— Narcotic packaging materials;

— A loaded .40 caliber Smith and Wesson semi-automatic handgun reported stolen in Albany;

— Two throwaway-style flip phones;

— One digital scale.

Officials said Scott is charged with giving a false name to law enforcement, parole violation, obstruction of law enforcement officers, theft by receiving stolen property, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, trafficking meth, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and possession of tools for the commission of a crime.

Officials with the sheriff’s office said federal prosecution will consider Scott’s case when it is forwarded to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

“What the (arrests) show is that (illegal activity) is still going on even in Lee County, that it’s still here,” Rachals said. “It shows that we’re doing our best with what we’ve got. And we do a doggone good job at it.”

Jada Haynes

Jada Haynes