By Guy Leonard, County Times
HOLLYWOOD, Md. (Nov. 6, 2008)—A traffic stop by Maryland State Police in the early morning hours of Nov. 1 netted several varieties of narcotics, thousands of dollars in cash and the arrests of three suspects from Virginia who prosecutors allege were transporting the narcotics with intent to distribute them.
OKeefe C. Stanley, Jr, 30, of Falls Church, Michael Anthony Dominguez, 22 of Arlington and Dre M. Roberts, 25, of McLean had their preliminary hearings Nov. 3 in front of District Court Judge John F. Slade III.
Roberts and Stanley were held on $150,000 and $250,000 full bonds respectively; Judge Slade ordered Dominguez be held without bond because of numerous incidents where he failed to appear in court on other charges.
Before Judge Slade could cut Dominguez off from asking a question, the suspect said, “I’m kind of confused, the drugs are mine.”
In charging documents filed against all three suspects, Dominguez also said the narcotics found in the vehicle by state troopers were his.
According to court papers, a state trooper pulled over the vehicle the three were driving in on Route 235 in Hollywood because the tag light was inoperative and the tags on the vehicle had just expired.
The vehicle was a gold Cadillac Escalade with Virginia tags, court papers stated, and was driven by Stanley.
Assistant State’s Attorney Daniel J. White said during the hearings that Roberts had told police she did not know the names of the men with whom she was driving and denied having any relationship with them.
White also said in court that Roberts used a cell phone to allegedly call other confederates in the alleged drug running operation, apparently to warn them they had been caught and to dispose of evidence.
“She’s certainly a confederate of theirs,” White told Judge Slade.
Roberts denied White’s claim.
“I didn’t alert anyone, I was calling for a ride home,” Roberts said.
Dominguez, White told the court, also gave law officers a false name when they questioned him that day.
“When they ran his fingerprints through the FBI, they found out who he was,” White said.
Police also found more than $10,000 in cash on Dominguez, White said in court, and that a more thorough search of the car was pending.
According to charging documents, the trooper who pulled over the three suspects smelled a strong odor of marijuana when he began to interview them and requested back up.
While initially searching the vehicle, troopers found a bag of suspected marijuana in the center console, charging documents state, as well as packages of hashish, hashish oil and additional marijuana throughout the vehicle.
All three were charged with three separate counts of possession of a controlled dangerous substance with the intent to distribute it.
Each count has a maximum penalty of five years in prison or a $15,000 fine if the suspects are convicted.
Preliminary hearings have been set for Nov. 26 for all three suspects, while Circuit Court indictments are expected soon.