COLUMBUS – Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers filed felony drug charges against two West Virginia men and one Ohio man after a traffic stop in Hocking County. During the traffic stop, troopers seized 458 grams of methamphetamine worth $45,800, a loaded Ruger 380 handgun and drug abuse instruments.
On May 8, at 8:42 p.m., troopers stopped a 1999 Ford Explorer with West Virginia registration for a fictitious license plate violation on U.S 33. Criminal indicators were observed and a Logan Police Department drug-sniffing canine alerted to the vehicle. A probable cause search revealed the contraband.
The suspects, Jesse Skidmore Jr., 54, and Forrest Little, 58, both of Webster Springs, W. Va., and Chad Reedy, 35, of Troy, were incarcerated in the Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail and charged with possession of a scheduled I substance and aggravated drug trafficking, both first-degree felonies and improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle, a fourth-degree felony.
If convicted, each could face up to 23 years in prison and up to a $45,000 fine.