A Florida man was arrested following an early morning traffic stop on Highway 49 that occurred due to the offense of speeding.
Phillip Earl Sutton, 33, was arrested July 6 and charged with possession of MDMA (ecstasy), possession of marijuana, speeding in excess of maximum limits and a child seatbelt violation.
A report of the arrest by Jones County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jarrod Elrod stated he was on patrol monitoring Highway 49 north of Cumslo Road. He said radar alerted on a gray Nissan that was traveling 75 in a 55-mph zone.
Elrod said he performed a traffic stop and made contact with the driver. He said the driver was identified as Sutton, and while speaking with the driver, he noticed a person covered with a blanket on the back seat.
The deputy said the person on the back seat was the driver’s young son, who was not wearing a seatbelt. Sutton told Allen that the vehicle was rented, and he was driving back from Florida.
The driver said he was visiting family in Milledgeville for the Fourth of July.
Elrod said the story about the timeframe of the visit appeared to change during the conversation, and the contract for the rental showed the vehicle was to be turned in July 5. Based on those circumstances, he made the decision to run his K9 partner on the vehicle.
The deputy said the K9 alerted on the vehicle, and he conducted a search. He said the search revealed an ecstasy pill in a sandwich bag, several bags of marijuana in the luggage, a marijuana vape cartridge, several marijuana joints and a marijuana grinder.
Elrod said Sutton was taken into custody and a family member came to pick up the child and rental vehicle.
