SAFETY-BELT VIOLATION LEADS TO DRUG BUST

PERRY - A routine traffic stop Saturday along Interstate 75 led to
the arrest of nine people on drug charges.

A Houston County sheriff's deputy pulled over a vehicle just north of
Perry because the driver wasn't wearing a seat belt, asked to search
the vehicle and discovered several small bags of cocaine and some
marijuana, Houston County Sheriff's Sgt. Wayne Franklin said today.

The driver of a second vehicle pulled up to see why his friends had
been stopped and deputies asked to search that vehicle in light of
drugs found in the other, Franklin said.

In all, about $250,000 worth of cocaine in small plastic bags was
discovered in both vehicles, along with small amounts of marijuana,
said Franklin, a narcotics investigator.

While not a big drug bust, Franklin said, "It was a good little pop."
The investigator said it was clear from the size of bags and scales
seized that the men, all members of the same construction crew, were
dealing drugs.

All were charged with possession of cocaine with intent to
distribute, Franklin said.

The men were identified by police as [Names redacted]