Trafficking

Guns and drugs seized in a Leesburg search warrant executed by the Lake County Sheriff's Office, Homeland Security agents and detectives with Clermont, Eustis, Leesburg and Mount Dora police departments Tuesday. PHOTO: Lake County Sheriff's Office

Leesburg search warrant takes multiple guns and trafficking amounts of drugs of the streets

Inside Scoop, Leesburg / By

LEESBURG, Fla.—A search warrant earlier this week took multiple guns and trafficking amounts of drugs off the street and landed a Leesburg man in jail whose criminal history dates back 26 years, according to an arrest affidavit.

Around 8 p.m. Tuesday, the Lake County Sherriff’s Office Special Investigations Unit (SIU,) LCSO SWAT, Homeland Security agents and detectives with Clermont, Eustis, Leesburg and Mount Dora police departments executed a search warrant at 2519 Myer Ave., Leesburg and found Walter Canady, 43, sitting in the driver’s seat of a vehicle in the driveway and 12 other people at the home.

Upon searching the home, detectives found a bedroom without a doorknob and locked with a deadbolt. After removing the deadbolt, LCSO found a cache of drugs, including about a pound of cocaine, 6 ounces of methamphetamine, 15 grams of fentanyl, 40 grams of MDMA, a small amount of marijuana, paraphernalia and seven firearms. When Canady was searched, deputies found numerous keys in his pocket, one that opened the deadbolt, the affidavit states.

Canady denied ever being in the home and said he had only been on the front screened patio, but detectives say that was a lie, as he was spotted exiting the home about five minutes before LCSO executed the search warrant.

Canady was arrested for armed trafficking of fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine and MDMA; possession paraphernalia; possession of ammunition by a convicted felon and five counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He is being held in the Lake County Jail on no bond.

Two other people were arrested at home in addition to Canady; Gabriella Partridge, 32, was arrested on a warrant for violation of probation, Rosa L. Taylor, 55, was arrested for a Sumter County warrant for grand theft and Taylor G. Estrill, 27, was issued a summons to appear in court for possession of drug paraphernalia.

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Eustis Traffic Stop Leads to Trafficking Arrest Early Friday

Eustis, Inside Scoop / By

EUSTIS, Fla.—Dark tint and a burned-out tag light caught the attention of a Eustis Police Department officer early Friday and ended with the arrest of an Apopka man for trafficking, according to an arrest affidavit.

Around 12:45 a.m. Friday, EPD was patrolling the area of U.S. Highway 441 and Eudora Road when an officer noticed a vehicle with “very dark” tint and a tag that was not completely illuminated. The officer stopped the vehicle and smelled burnt marijuana as he approached the car, the affidavit states.

The officer asked the four females and one male occupying the car if anyone had a medical marijuana card and no one answered, and the male, later identified as John Lanard Baker, 40, of Apopka, was holding onto a grey backpack, the officer noted. Three EPD officers arrived as backup and all five occupants were asked to exit the vehicle. Officers searched the vehicle and found a burnt marijuana blunt near the front passenger seat and crack cocaine rolled in foil in the center console, according to the affidavit.

The grey backpack Baker was holding was searched and officers found more marijuana and a digital scale with white residue. Officers then searched Baker and found a pill bottle in his waistband that contained 7 grams of crack cocaine and two baggies that tested positive for MDMA and weighed 13 grams—a trafficking amount. He also had $400 cash in his wallet, according to the affidavit.

Baker, who was also wanted in Orange County for failure to pay child support, was arrested for trafficking in MDMA, possession of cocaine, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was transported to the Lake County Jail, where he is being held on $29,500 bond.

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Fentanyl, Cocaine, Marijuana, Stolen Gun Found During Umatilla Search Warrant, Trio Arrested

Clermont, Eustis, Inside Scoop, Leesburg, Mount Dora, Umatilla, Unincorporated Lake / By

UMATILLA, Fla.—Three people are behind bars and $50,000 worth of drugs are off the streets following a search warrant at a Umatilla home early Wednesday, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

Acting on Crimeline tips and complaints, LCSO’s SWAT team, along with detectives from LCSO, Clermont Police Department, Eustis Police Department, Leesburg Police Department, Mount Dora Police Department and the Department of Homeland Security wrapped up a six-month long investigation Wednesday with the execution of the search warrant at 38945 Pine St., in unincorporated Umatilla.

Law enforcement detained three people found inside the home, Robert Donaldson, 46, Joana Silva, 22, and Lashonda Gaston, 44. Donaldson and Silva are engaged, according to LCSO.

Upon searching the home, law enforcement found a large amount of powder and crack cocaine, weighing about 1.5 pounds, along with an ounce of fentanyl in pill form and 7 pounds of marijuana, with a combined street value of $50,000. The fentanyl pills were stamped with a handicap symbol, LCSO said; a stolen gun and $10,000 in cash were also found.

PHOTOS: Lake County Sheriff’s Office

Donaldson, who was already on probation for possession of drugs and resisting arrest in a 2021 case, was arrested for trafficking in cocaine, trafficking in fentanyl, possession of marijuana with intent to sell, possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, manufacturing cocaine into a cocaine base, possession of drug paraphernalia, and ownership, lease, rental, or possession of a residence for trafficking in or manufacturing a controlled substance; he is being held in the Lake County Jail on no bond.

Silva, who was caught trying to flush crack down the toilet, was arrested for tampering with evidence, trafficking in cocaine, trafficking in fentanyl, possession of marijuana with intent to sell, manufacturing cocaine into a cocaine base, possession of drug paraphernalia and ownership, lease, rental, or possession of a residence for trafficking in or manufacturing a controlled substance; she is being held in LCJ on $561,000 bond.

Gaston was arrested for trafficking in fentanyl and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; she is being held In LCJ on $20,000 bond.

Fentanyl, Cocaine, Marijuana, Stolen Gun Found During Umatilla Search Warrant, Trio Arrested Read More »

Man Arrested Numerous Times in Lake and Orange Counties Arrested Again for Trafficking in Fentanyl

Eustis, Inside Scoop, Leesburg, Unincorporated Lake / By

LEESBURG, Florida—A man arrested, but never convicted, numerous times for a variety of offenses including vehicular manslaughter, witness tampering, trafficking in drugs and battery on a pregnant female in both Orange County and Lake County, has been arrested yet again, this time for trafficking in fentanyl, according to an arrest affidavit.

Emmanuel Cazeau, 39, of Eustis, was pulled over early Friday morning by Lake County Sheriff’s Office deputies for a minor traffic offense as he pulled out of Circle K, at the corner of County Road 44 and County Road 473 in unincorporated Leesburg, according to an arrest affidavit.

Deputies asked for consent to search Cazeau’s vehicle, which he denied, and K9 Jim and his handler performed an open-air sniff on the vehicle. K9 Jim alerted to the odor of narcotics and Cazeau and his passenger were removed from the vehicle. Deputies searched the vehicle and found a small bag of a purple substance weighing 13 grams that field-tested positive for the deadly drug fentanyl, the affidavit states.

PHOTO: Lake County Sheriff’s Office

Cazeau was taken into custody and arrested for trafficking in fentanyl. The arresting deputy requested a heightened bond of $200,000.

“The defendant was found in possession of approximately 13 grams of fentanyl, which carries a 25 year-minimum mandatory (sentence) and a mandatory $500,000 fine. Even a small amount of fentanyl is known to lead to serious bodily injury and/or death; the defendant was in possession of such an excessive amount which is a serious danger to the community of Lake County,” the arresting deputy noted in the affidavit.

Cazeau was transported to the Lake County Jail, where he is being held on no bond on the trafficking charge and a bond revocation order.

According to LCSO online booking records, Cazeau has been arrested in Lake County seven times since 2019 for multiple offenses including drug trafficking and felony battery; the charges were dropped in each case, according to Lake County Clerk of Court online records.

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K9 Onyx PHOTO: Lake County Sheriff's Office

Paisley Man Arrested for Trafficking Fentanyl after K9 Onyx Sniffs Out the Deadly Drug During Traffic Stop

Inside Scoop, Unincorporated Lake / By

DeLAND, Florida—A failure to use a turning signal and following too closely led to the arrest of a Paisley man after he was found with a brick of fentanyl under the hood of the truck he was driving in the DeLand area of Lake County Tuesday night, according to an arrest affidavit.

A deputy with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office spotted a white Ford pickup truck tailgating a car near the River Forest Campground around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday shortly after another deputy saw the truck turn on County Road 42 from State Road 44 without using a turning signal. Deputies pulled the truck over on Third Street and the driver, Drew Thomas Daly, 29, of Paisley immediately exited the vehicle, according to the affidavit.

Drew Daly PHOTO: Lake County Sheriff’s Office

Although Daly consented to a search of the truck, deputies utilized LCSO K9 Onyx and his handler to conduct a free air sniff of the truck and the pup alerted to the odor of narcotics, the affidavit states. A search of the truck revealed black shopping bag under the hood between the fender and the blower motor. In the bag, deputies found a zip top plastic bag that contained a “brown brick” substance that field-tested positive for fentanyl and Daly was taken into custody. He was searched and found with a smaller bag fentanyl in his left, front pocket.

The total weight of the deadly drug was 144 grams, according to the affidavit. Trafficking in more than 28 grams of fentanyl carries a minimum mandatory sentence of 25 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.

Daly was transported to the Lake County Jail, where he is being held on $100,000 bond.

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