SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Sept. 6, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — A suspect was booked into jail Sunday after police say he was found with red and blue flashing lights atop his vehicle, gave officers false information, then was found with four large baggies of illegal drugs.
Suspect Jason Jose Martinez, 41, faces charges of:
- Distribute/offer/arrange distribution of a controlled substance, a second-degree felony
- Giving false information to law enforcement, a class B misdemeanor
- Use or possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor
A probable cause statement filed in the case says a Salt Lake City Police officer was patrolling in the area of 1000 South and Redwood Road when he spotted a vehicle “which was obviously not a law enforcement vehicle parked in a parking lot,” the statement says.
“The vehicle had red and blue flashing lights on the front of the vehicle, and it was acting as if it had another vehicle stopped.”
The SLCPD officer approached the man, later identified as Martinez, who “was attempting to take off the light when I pulled up,” the probable cause statement says.
The officer asked the suspect’s name, then ran it through a records check, which came back without results. The suspect then gave a Social Security number, which came back as registered to someone else.
The officer then arrested Martinez, who confirmed his real name and date of birth, the police statement says.
A preliminary search of the suspect turned up four large baggies of drugs near his waistband. Three bags had a white crystal substance and one had a brown, tar-like substances. The baggie contents field tested positive as meth and heroin.
“This amount of drugs is not consistent with a user’s amount of heroin, and is consistent with those who deal drugs,” the officer’s statement says.
The suspect told the officer there was a fake handgun in the vehicle, the statement says, noting “drug dealers often have guns, real or fake, with them whenever they are distributing drugs.”
The suspect also admitted to having a glass pipe used to smoke heroin, which was also found in the car, as was the fake handgun.
Martinez was booked into jail without bail on new charges and outstanding warrants, the probable cause statement says.
