An extensive investigation into a Nicholson Street home, initiated following a Special Investigation Division stop on Beulah Road earlier this week, has landed a Clinton man in jail facing meth and other drug-related charges.
James Alvis Hines, 47, of 913 Nicholson St. in Clinton, is behind bars under a $10,000 secured bond facing charges of felony possession of methamphetamine; felony possession of meth precursors and misdemeanor charges of possession of marijuana, possession of a Schedule IV controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.
His arrest comes on the heels of a probe which began Monday afternoon when Sheriff’s SID agents made a routine traffic stop on Beulah Road that turned out to be less than routine.
At that stop, officers observed items consistent with the manufacture of meth in plain sight, ask for, and received, a consent to search and immediately took the driver, Kelly Miller, and her two passengers — Kim Byrd and Lloyd Talmage Whaley — into custody.
Seized during the stop were what officers called meth precursors, which included Draino, hoses, propane fuel, batteries, assorted pills, clamps, a torch and a cell phone.
Further investigation, Sheriff’s Cpl. Marcus Smith said, led SID agents to a suspected meth lab on Nicholson Street. At that scene, agents did a “knock and talk” and then received a consent to search the premises. That search, conducted with the assistance of Clinton Police officers, turned up more meth precursors and led to Hines’ arrest Wednesday afternoon.
Seized at the Nicholson Street residence were 42 dosage units of Alprazolam, 0.5 grams of meth and assorted items believed used in the manufacture of the illegal substance, including coffee filters, camp fuel, plastic gloves, salt, glass jars, Ammonium Nitrate, propane, lighter fluid, hoses and batteries.
Smith said Monday that traffic stops, such as the one made on Beulah Road were vital in law enforcement efforts to get illegal drugs off the streets.
“You never know what you are going to turn up during a stop,” Smith said, but many times they wind up taking drugs off the street. In this case, we arrested suspect in one meth case and it led to another site and another arrest.”
Smith said it also helped officers seize potentially dangerous — and often highly explosive — materials.
Although Nicholson Street is in the city limits, sheriff’s agents conducted the investigation because evidence from their Beulah Road stop led them to the second site.
“We work hand in hand,” Smith said about the Sheriff’s Office and the Clinton Police Department. “They assisted us with this case, and we appreciate their help.”
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