Not So Happy New Year
Busted Tail Light Leads to Drug Bust
By Will Johnson
Messenger Reporter
CROCKETT – As many East Texans prepared to ring in the New Year at the stroke of midnight on Wednesday, a Crockett man was in a less-than-celebratory mood as he made his New Year’s resolutions from a jail cell following his arrest on two felony drug counts and four misdemeanor charges.
Brian Christopher Robbins, 37, was taken into custody just before midnight on Dec. 31 and charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance, penalty group one; two counts of possession of a dangerous drug; possession of marijuana; and possession of drug paraphernalia, after the vehicle he was a passenger in was pulled over by law enforcement.
According to an affidavit of probable cause, the vehicle Robbins was riding in was pulled over after Crockett Police Officer Frank McIntyre observed the vehicle had a broken taillight.
“The vehicle also failed to stop completely at the stop sign, then made a right onto E. Bowie without using a turn signal,” the affidavit reported.
The CPD Officer initiated a traffic stop and made contact with the driver. McIntyre noticed Robbins was in the passenger seat and also observed two unopened beer cans in the center console, the legal document reported.
“Due to my observations of the alcoholic beverages and (the driver’s) poor driving, I suspected (the driver) may be under the influence of alcohol, therefore I asked him to step out of the vehicle,” the report stated.
The driver was given a field sobriety test and passed. The officer then asked the driver “… if he had anything in his vehicle I needed to know about.”
The driver said no and McIntyre asked for permission to search the vehicle to which the driver consented.
“I approached the passenger door and asked Robbins to step out of the car,” the affidavit stated. “Once Robbins was out of the car, I began to search his side of the car and recovered a bag of suspected marijuana weighing at .49 grams tucked in between his seat and the center console.”
Robbins admitted the marijuana was his and he was detained. As the search continued, McIntyre opened the glove box and a green pipe, along with a black pouch, fell out.
The affidavit reported the pouch contained: three grams of suspected methamphetamine; 10 white pills marked DAN 5658 (muscle relaxers); one yellow pill marked 215 (anti-seizure); two purple and one blue pill weighing in at 1.4 grams and suspected of being ecstasy; an unknown crushed yellow pill; and three sim cards for cell phones.
“I read Robbins his rights and with his rights in mind, he didn’t really want to talk to me. However, he did say everything was his, although he would not go into detail of what exactly the narcotics were, he just said everything was his and not (the driver’s).
Robbins was charged with: charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance, penalty group one; two counts of possession of a dangerous drug; possession of marijuana; and possession of drug paraphernalia.
The two counts of possession of a controlled substance are considered as third degree felonies.
According to Section 12.34 of the Texas Penal Code, “An individual adjudged guilty of a felony of the third degree shall be punished by imprisonment in the institutional division for any term of not more than 10 years or less than two years. In addition to imprisonment, an individual adjudged guilty of a felony of the third degree may be punished by a fine not to exceed $10,000.”
Robbins is currently held at the Houston County Jail on bonds totaling $38,352.
Will Johnson may be contacted via e-mail at [email protected].
