Yesterday, March 7, 2023, a Las Vegas, Nevada man was arrested on drug charges after cocaine and US Currency was seized during a traffic stop on I-65 near Seymour, Indiana.

The investigation began at approximately 12:30 pm, when Master Trooper Randel Miller conducted a traffic stop on a white Honda CRV on I-65 Southbound near the 51-mile marker in Jackson County. 

During the traffic stop, Trp. Miller became suspicious that criminal activity was taking place.  He deployed his K-9 “Bosco” on the exterior of the vehicle.  Bosco alerted to the odor of illegal drugs coming from the vehicle.

During a search, troopers located approximately two kilos of suspected cocaine along with approximately $8,000 in US Currency. 

The driver, Jhonatan S. Carrillo, age 27, Las Vegas, Nevada, was arrested and incarcerated in the Jackson County Jail on initial charges of Dealing in Cocaine, Level 2 Felony, Possession of Cocaine, Level 3 Felony, and Operating While Never Having Received a Valid Driver’s License.

The suspected cocaine, US Currency, and Honda CRV were all seized as a part of the investigation.  The estimated street value of the cocaine was $50,000.

Trp. Miller was assisted at the scene by numerous troopers from the Indiana State Police-Versailles Post.  A Seymour Police Officer also assisted at the scene by serving as a translator during the investigation.  

“Communities across the country, from South Texas to Southern Indiana, deserve better,” – Rep. Houchin.

On Monday, March 6, Congresswoman Erin Houchin (R-Ind.-09) visited the southern border in Uvalde and Eagle Pass, Texas. The trip occurs as Americans across the country face the consequences of President Biden’s growing border crisis.

“I’ve said it countless times — the Biden border crisis has made every state, including Indiana, a border state. During the visit, I heard story after story about the complications of having a wide-open southern border from local leaders, residents, law enforcement officers, and border patrol agents. We heard parents no longer let their kids play outside for fear of an interaction with a smuggler or dangerous migrant. We heard from ranchers who used to warn their children to look out for rattlesnakes and are now far more concerned of encounters with illegal migrants. We heard from law enforcement and border patrol agents alike that the cartels in Mexico have more resources to evade capture than they have to ensure safety.

“Seeing it firsthand has only reaffirmed the true magnitude of the problem we are facing at our southern border and the need for President Biden to act. The President has said the border is secure. Respectfully, if the President took time to visit Eagle Pass and Uvalde to see what I saw, he would disagree. The southern border is not secure. When President Biden stopped construction on the border wall and discontinued plans for added personnel and technology, he opened the floodgates to dangerous drugs, criminals, and human smugglers coming across the border into the United States. Communities across the country, from South Texas to Southern Indiana, deserve better,” said Congresswoman Houchin.

During the trip, Congresswoman Houchin engaged with border patrol agents, local elected officials, law enforcement officers, first responders, and local property owners to hear how the crisis at our southern border is affecting our country’s safety every day.

Tuesday morning, March 7, at approximately 11:05 a.m., Indiana State Police received information Brandon Freeman, 33, of Nashville, TN, was traveling east on I-64 in a gold Chevrolet Impala from the Illinois state line and was wanted out of Tennessee for a federal weapons charge.

He was arrested and charged with: 

1. Federal Warrant for a Weapons Offense
2. Resisting Law Enforcement, Level 6 Felony
3. Resisting Law Enforcement, Class A Misdemeanor

At approximately 11:17 a.m., Indiana State Police First Sergeant Helmer spotted the vehicle traveling east on I-64 near SR 65 and attempted to stop it.

Freeman failed to stop, continued traveling east at a high rate of speed, exited onto US 41 south for a brief distance before making a U-turn and continuing east again on I-64. 

Senior Trooper Finney was able to deploy stop sticks at the 33 mile-marker causing the vehicle to slow down and eventually drive off the roadway on the southside at the 36 mile-marker.

As soon as the vehicle came to a final rest, Freeman exited and ran south into a wooded area. Officers set up a perimeter and requested air support and SWAT to respond.

At approximately 12:40 p.m., Indiana State Police SWAT entered the wooded area and within an hour found Freeman hiding near a log. Freeman was arrested without further incident and taken to the Warrick County Jail.

Arresting Agencies: Indiana State Police and US Marshals Task Force

Assisting Agencies: Warrick County Sheriff’s Office, Indiana State Excise Police, Elberfeld Town Marshal, Warrick County EMA, and Vanderburgh County EMA.

On Tuesday, March 3, 2023, Troopers and Detectives with the Indiana State Police Bloomington District and the ISP Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) served search warrants in Ellettsville relating to a child pornography investigation.

The investigation started in September of 2022 when Sgt. Chris Fears and ICAC Detective Robert Whyte received 22 National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) cyber tips relating to child pornography. The cyber tips advised that an unknown individual was distributing child pornography on the social media applications, Discord and Twitter.  

Detective Whyte and Sgt. Fears were able to locate the suspect through the social media account and identified him as Billy W. Arnold, a 24-year-old male who at the time of the incidents resided in Martinsville. Detectives were able to locate Arnold after he moved to Ellettsville earlier this year and interviewed him while ISP Forensic Examiners completed a simultaneous phone extraction. The phone device is still being processed, but due to his interview, Arnold was arrested and transported to Morgan County Jail for the following charges,

· Four (4) Counts of Distribution of Child Pornography Under 12 Years Old, Level 4 Felony

· Four (4) Counts of Distribution of Child Pornography Under 12 Years Old, Level 5 Felony

Assisting ISP ICAC detectives were Trooper Cody Brown, ISP Bloomington District Detectives, Ellettsville Police Department, and Morgan County Sheriff Department.

Anyone having any information related to crimes against children is encouraged to contact their local law enforcement agency or visit the NCMEC website at http://www.missingkids.com/home  and find the link to make a CYBERTIPLINE report.

An arrest photo may be obtained from the Morgan County Jail.

All criminal defendants are to be presumed innocent until, and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.