Oak Ridge Today

WYSH: ‘Suspicious package’ turns out to be woman sleeping on picnic table

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Clinton Police Department

Information from WYSH Radio

Last week, the Clinton Police Department responded to a call about what was described as a suspicious package, but officers instead discovered a woman sleeping on a picnic table at Lakefront Park.

Police were called after seeing suspicious items and a pair of shoes near a table by the tennis courts at about 7 a.m. Wednesday, July 13. Initial reports indicated that a dufflebag was on the table and that at one point it had moved.

Officers responded and found a woman wrapped from head to toe in a blanket asleep on the picnic table. Officer Trevor Smith made contact with the woman, later identified as 43-year-old Pam Reid of Jellico, who told him that she had been walking the night before and had stopped there to rest. [Read more…]

DA: Most indicted in cocaine conspiracies plead not guilty Friday

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Dave Clark

Dave Clark

Note: This story was updated at 4:10 p.m.

CLINTON—Most of the defendants indicted in two cocaine conspiracies that were announced this month pleaded not guilty during arraignments in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Friday, officials said.

Trial dates have already been set, Seventh District Attorney General Dave Clark said. The trial date for the defendants charged in a Knoxville conspiracy is July 2017. The trial date for those charged in an Oak Ridge conspiracy is September 2017.

Officials said there were 34 conspiracy-related arraignments scheduled for 32 defendants in Anderson County Criminal Court on Friday morning.

Almost all of the defendants scheduled to appear on conspiracy-related charges on Friday were indicted by the Anderson County Grand Jury on May 3 in two alleged plots to manufacture, distribute, and sell 300 grams or more of cocaine last year. They were also indicted on charges of allegedly conspiring to manufacture, distribute, and sell more than 0.5 gram of cocaine in a school zone. Each of those defendants is facing eight charges. One conspiracy allegedly involved 24 people, and the second allegedly involved 11. Two of the defendants were named in both conspiracies.

Some of the defendants are also facing more drug-related charges. [Read more…]

Twenty-four indicted in second cocaine conspiracy of 300 grams or more

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Edward Javard Mitchell

Edward Javard Mitchell

Note: This story was last updated at 10:08 p.m.

Twenty-four people, most of them Oak Ridge residents, have been indicted by the Anderson County Grand Jury in a second alleged cocaine conspiracy of 300 grams or more. That makes a total of 33 people who have been indicted in two separate conspiracies to allegedly manufacture, distribute, and sell 300 grams or more of cocaine last year.

There are other charges that apply to some of the suspects as well.

The indictments allege that the two conspiracies, one involving 11 people and the other involving 24, both occurred between May 14 and December 23, 2015. The indictments are being posted by the Anderson County Circuit Court Clerk following a drug suspect roundup that started Thursday and continued into Saturday in Oak Ridge. It’s not clear yet if other communities were involved, or if authorities have alleged additional conspiracies. Also, all the charges against all the defendants don’t appear to be posted yet.

Two of the defendants are named in both conspiracies.

Authorities have said little about the case so far. But they plan to release more information about what they have described as a complex, multi-county criminal investigation during a Monday afternoon press conference in the Clinton office of Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark. Authorities have said parts of the investigation were unprecedented. Local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies are expected to report on the investigation during the Monday afternoon press conference. [Read more…]

Eleven indicted in alleged conspiracy to sell 300 grams or more of cocaine

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Jordan Antwan Jones

Jordan Antwan Jones

Note: This story was last updated at 10:25 p.m. May 9.

Eleven Oak Ridge and Knoxville residents were indicted May 3 on charges that they conspired to manufacture, distribute, and sell 300 grams or more of cocaine-based products last year.

The alleged cocaine conspiracy occurred between May 14 and December 23, 2015. The indictments were filed May 3, 2016.

The 11 indicted are:

  • Jordan Antwan Jones, 28, Tracy Lane, in Oak Ridge;
  • Deangelo James Galbreath, 28, Deer Run Drive, Knoxville;
  • Laquan Bernard Barber, 32, Hillside Road, Oak Ridge;
  • Derrick Jemail Anthony, 38, South Fisk Avenue, Oak Ridge;
  • Christopher Shane Black, 28, West Pasadena Lane, Oak Ridge;
  • Nicholas O’Brien Mitchell, 32, Tracy Lane, Oak Ridge;
  • William Ralph Sanders Jr., 38, South Benedict Avenue, Oak Ridge;
  • Alfred Lee Jones, 49, Black Rock Circle, Knoxville;
  • Ellen Michelle Sanders, 31, Nasson Lane, Oak Ridge;
  • Sarah Denise Cupp, 30, Aloha Avenue, Knoxville; and
  • Efia Ann Hull, 38, Deer Run Drive, Knoxville.

They are each facing Class A felony charges of:

  • conspiracy to manufacture 300 grams or more of cocaine,
  • conspiracy to distribute 300 grams or more of cocaine,
  • conspiracy to sell 300 grams or more of cocaine, and
  • conspiracy to possess with the intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell 300 grams or more of cocaine.

They have also been indicted on Class A felony charges of: [Read more…]

Jail records: About two dozen arrests on drug-related charges Thursday

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Dave Clark

Dave Clark

Note: This story was last updated at 8:26 a.m.

There were about two dozen arrests on drug-related charges in Anderson County on Thursday, according to jail records, as authorities from several agencies swept through Oak Ridge and possibly other communities in what they’ve described as a multi-county criminal investigation.

The most common charge, by far, is manufacturing, delivering, selling, or possessing a controlled substance, according to Anderson County jail records. Counts on that charge vary from one to two dozen, according to jail records, with many of those arrested facing in the range of eight to 11 counts.

Other charges listed against a few of those arrested include possessing a firearm in the commission of a felony, unlawfully carrying a weapon, possessing drug paraphernalia, tampering with evidence, property theft, and simple possession.

Most of those arrested are listed as Oak Ridge residents, but there are also residents of Knoxville, Clinton, Kingston, and Madisonville. The defendants range in age from 20-61. [Read more…]

Officials to report on multi-county criminal investigation on Monday

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Dave Clark

Dave Clark

Note: This story was updated at 5:48 p.m.

Local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies will report on Monday on a multi-county criminal investigation that has lasted several years, authorities said Thursday.

The investigation has been complex and is unprecedented in several ways, according to a brief statement on Thursday afternoon from Dave Clark, district attorney general in the Seventh Judicial District (Anderson County).

Media have been invited to attend the Monday afternoon press conference in Clark’s office in Clinton. [Read more…]

Today: ASAP helps ORPD, CPD take back expired, unwanted prescription drugs

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You can dispose of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs today in Oak Ridge and Clinton.

The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 30, at the Oak Ridge Police Department and Clinton Police Department. Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention of Anderson County and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration are helping with the event.

It’s the 11th time in six years that an event like this has been held, a press release said.

You can bring your pills for disposal to the ORPD at 200 South Tulane Avenue in Oak Ridge or to the Clinton Police Department at 125 West Broad Street in Clinton. The DEA cannot accept liquids, needles, or sharps, only pills or patches. The service is free and anonymous. No questions will be asked, the press release said. [Read more…]

WYSH: Clinton crash injures motorcyclist

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Information from WYSH Radio, an Oak Ridge Today news partner

A car-motorcycle crash in south Clinton late Monday morning sent one man to the hospital by Lifestar medical helicopter, authorities said.

The crash occurred just before 11 a.m. Monday on Clinch Avenue in front of the Icon Market.

The Clinton Police Department said that 54-year-old John Aulton of Clinton had been headed north on Clinch Avenue on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle when a southbound Cadillac sedan driven by 75-year-old Billy Ashe of Clinton tried to turn left into the market. But his car ended up in the path of Aulton’s motorcycle, authorities said, and even though Aulton reportedly locked his brakes, he struck the right front side of the Cadillac and was thrown off the bike. [Read more…]

Motorcyclist flown to UT after car-motorcycle crash in Clinton

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A motorcyclist was flown by medical helicopter to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville after a car-motorcycle crash on Clinch Avenue in south Clinton on Monday, authorities said.

The Clinton Police Department and Anderson County EMS both responded to the crash.

The CPD said it doesn’t have any other information yet.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Crews fight fire inside former Magnet Mills; Clinton City Schools closed Friday

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Magnet Mills Fire Clinton April 7 2016

The former Magnet Mills in Clinton caught fire on Thursday evening, April 7, 2016. (Photo courtesy Philip Warfield)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 10 a.m. April 8.

CLINTON—Crews battled a fire inside the former Magnet Mills in Clinton on Thursday evening, and Clinton City Schools will be closed Friday, April 8.

Charles G. Seivers Boulevard was closed downtown Thursday night as crews fought the fire and prepared to remove items that were still smoldering inside.

Clinton City Schools said schools would be closed because of the fire and the roads that would be closed in the morning.

“This decision was made in an abundance of caution for the safety of our students and staff members,” school officials said.

The fire was reported at about 7:15 p.m. Thursday in one building at the former hosiery mill. The property includes two big, brick warehouse buildings next to CVS Pharmacy between Charles G. Seivers Boulevard and the Clinch River in downtown Clinton. [Read more…]

Warrants: Woman admits residents made meth in Tusculum Drive apartment

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Kimberly Hughes Welch

Kimberly Hughes Welch

An Oak Ridge woman who lives at an apartment raided by police on Wednesday admitted that she and a man who also lives at the home were using methamphetamine laboratory components, including chemicals and pseudoephedrine powder, to make meth there, authorities said.

Besides the chemicals and pseudoephedrine, officers also found gas generators, hoses, and what they described as bi-layer liquids, according to arrest warrants. Police described those items as meth lab components. They were allegedly found inside Apartment C at 197 Tusculum Drive during a Wednesday evening search, according to the warrants, which were filed by Simon Byrne of the Seventh District Crime Task Force.

Raynell Fountaine Hopson

Raynell Fountaine Hopson

After she was read her Miranda rights, apartment resident Kimberly Welch, 48, told police that she and Raynell Hopson, 47, who also lives in the apartment, were using the equipment to make meth, Byrne said.

Welch and Hopson have each been charged with the initiation of meth manufacturing, possession of drug paraphernalia, and the manufacture/delivery/sale of Schedule II drugs.

The alleged meth lab was within 1,000 feet of La Petite Academy on Tulsa Road, a drug-free school zone, so there could be a school zone enhancement to the charges, which would be applied at sentencing if Welch or Hopson are convicted, said Russell Barker, director of the Seventh District Crime Task Force. [Read more…]

Authorities find active meth lab on Tusculum Drive; three arrested

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Tusculum-Drive-Meth-Lab-Bust-March-30-2016-2

Authorities found what they described as an active methamphetamine laboratory in a home on Tusculum Drive on Wednesday, March 30, 2016. Pictured above are three members of the 7th District Crime Task Force dressed in hazmat suits and using oxygen as they prepare to enter the back of the home. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 5:15 p.m.

Authorities found what they described as an active methamphetamine laboratory on Tusculum Drive on Wednesday, and three people were arrested, including two people who live at the home.

The Seventh District Crime Task Force determined the home was an active meth lab at about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Director Russell Barker said. The alleged lab was inside a home at 197 Tusculum Drive, Apartment C.

Three members of the Crime Task Force first checked the home wearing hazardous materials suits and breathing oxygen. After they determined it was an active meth lab, they went back in to remove what Barker described as meth lab materials and trash left from cooking meth. Officers also found finished product, Barker said, although he didn’t have information on how much.

Officers collected the meth lab-related materials in front of the home on a blue tarp. Wearing gloves, boots, and sometimes using breathing masks with eye shields, they also placed some items in plastic five-gallon buckets.

A man and woman who live at the house were decontaminated and taken to jail in white Tyvek suits at about 7:45 p.m. Wednesday. Barker said one of them had been inside the home but was coming out when officers arrived. [Read more…]