Two Indianapolis men were arrested on drug trafficking charges following a traffic stop in Bargersville.
Torrez Melilk Esco, 23, of Indianapolis, was arrested on charges of dealing in cocaine or a narcotic drug, a Level 2 felony, and dealing in a controlled substance, a Level 4 felony. Tavon Malcolm Esco, 19, of Indianapolis, was arrested on charges of carrying a handgun without a license and theft, both Level 6 felonies.
The Johnson County Prosecutor’s Office will decide what, if any, charges to file.
Bargersville police observed a car traveling southbound at 84 miles per hour in a 45 mph zone on State Road 37 near Smith Valley Road around 2:15 a.m. Monday. When police caught up to the car near the intersection of SR 37 and Banta Road, they initiated a traffic stop, according to a Bargersville Police Department report.
When police spoke with the driver, he said he did not have his driver’s license on him, and police asked him for his information. There were also three other passengers in the car, the report said.
Officers thought the occupants were acting strangely and requested a K9 unit from the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office come to the scene to investigate. The K9 detected drugs in the car, said Jeremy Roll, Bargersville police spokesperson.
Police asked the occupants to leave the car and gave the driver a ticket. While this was happening, a sheriff’s deputy detained Tavon Esco after he had given the deputy a handgun he was carrying — which was loaded. Police searched the handgun’s serial number and discovered it had been reported stolen in Monroe County, and also determined Tavon did not have a permit to carry a handgun, according to the report.
Law enforcement searched the car and found a lockbox in the trunk. The keys to the lockbox were found on Torrez Esco, who handed the keys to police, the report says.
When police opened the lockbox they found a clear bag containing a brown powder which appeared to be heroin. Police conducted a field test on the powder, which showed it was positive for heroin, and later determined it weighed about 158 grams. They also found a pill bottle containing 303 pills which were labeled as Oxycodone, the report said.
Officers sent the pills to a state lab for testing after receiving information from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) advising them of a trend where fentanyl is pressed into a light blue pill form and labeled as Oxycodone. The results of the test are pending, according to the report.
Bargersville police believe the drugs were headed towards Bloomington, the department said in a news release.
Tavon Esco and Torrez Esco were booked in the Johnson County jail. Tavon was released on a $2,000 bond and Torrez remains at the jail on a $39,000 bond.
The driver was ticketed for speeding and another passenger was released without charges, the report says.
