A fentanyl and methamphetamine trafficking case that started with a traffic stop last year has now resulted in a fourth person being sentenced to prison, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Willie Goldsmith, 39, of Lynn Haven, pled no contest and was adjudicated guilty of Trafficking in Fentanyl (more than 14 grams but less than 28 grams), and Trafficking in Amphetamine (28 grams or more). Circuit Court Judge Brantley Clark accepted the plea and sentenced Goldsmith to 20 years in prison. Judge Clark also ordered a $100,000 fine.

Goldsmith was set for trial last week. Prosecutor Frank Sullivan was prepared to call witnesses and present evidence that the defendant was in possession of a large quantity of fentanyl and methamphetamine when he drove away from a co-defendant’s residence April 6, 2024. Goldsmith entered his plea the day of jury selection.

The evidence would have shown that on April 4, 2024, Alicia Ducker, 30, of Panama City, was pulled over by Panama City Police for a traffic violation and not wearing her seatbelt. She behaved erratically, and K9 Rambo alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle.

Ducker was found to be hiding methamphetamine and fentanyl in her underwear. She said she got them from Anthony Polly, 43, who lived nearby. Ducker has since pled and was sentenced to 3 years in prison.

Police set up surveillance on Polly’s apartment and obtained a search warrant. On April 6, they saw Polly exit his apartment and get into Goldsmith’s truck, where they sat for about 5 minutes.

Goldsmith pulled out and was stopped for a traffic violation. K9 Rambo alerted for the presence of drugs and police found about 64 grams of methamphetamine and about 60 grams of fentanyl in the truck.

Officers then served the search warrant on Polly’s residence and found about 78 grams of methamphetamine in 4 baggies, and nearly 17 grams of fentanyl. Polly admitted to selling the drugs to Ducker two days earlier.

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Polly pled to Trafficking in Fentanyl and Methamphetamine and received a 15-year sentence.

A second person in the residence, Andy Lee Rhodes, was found to have a small amount of methamphetamine. He has since pled and was sentenced to 2 years in prison.

Basford thanked Panama City police for their proactive work and quick reaction that resulted in the arrests and seizures.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

A jury deliberated for only 7 minutes Wednesday before finding a Panama City man guilty of Trafficking in Fentanyl (more than 28 grams) after he mailed nearly 1,000 grams of the deadly drug here from California, State Attorney Larry Basford said.

Kevin Matthew McCray, 33, faces up to 30 years in prison, with a minimum-mandatory 25 years. Circuit Court Judge Brantley Clark set sentencing for Oct. 24.

Bay County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Division arrested McCray Dec. 6, 2022, hours after he got off his return flight from California where he had picked up about a kilo of fentanyl.

“This is just a huge amount of fentanyl and was a really unique case,” Sullivan said. “This seizure by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office was by far the largest ever in our circuit, and one of the largest in the state.

“To put that into context, in a hospital setting a typical fentanyl dose is 50 micrograms,” Sullivan continued. “The fentanyl kept off the streets by the Sheriff’s Office was enough to give almost every one of Florida’s 23 million residents a dose.”

It also was enough fentanyl to cause a fatal overdose for every resident of the 14^th Judicial Circuit – with tens of thousands of doses to spare.

As part of a 2022 narcotics investigation, the Sheriff’s Office learned the defendant was in California to pick up about a kilo of fentanyl that he mailed back to a Panama City address. He was placed under surveillance after his return flight landed Dec. 6, 2022, and pulled over later that day for a traffic infraction.

During questioning, he admitted to traveling to California to pick up the drugs and mailing them back here.

Sullivan said the arrest, seizure, and successful prosecution of a defendant like McCray is a victory for everyone.

“Law enforcement has a lot of different tools to fight drugs and it’s not very effective when a lot of addicts are being arrested again and again because it doesn’t really stop the suppl y,” Sullivan said. “In this case law enforcement didn’t just go to the next step to arrest the dealer, they went all the way to the top and arrested the drug supplier,” he continued. “They went to the head of the snake.”

Basford thanked the Bay County Sheriff’s Office for its investigation that enabled it to track the drugs from California to Panama City and then make an arrest before it got into the hands of local dealers.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

 

A 36-year-old Panama City man who repeatedly had sex with a young teen while supplying her with drugs and alcohol was found guilty Tuesday of 3 counts of Lewd & Lascivious Battery.

Following the verdict, State Attorney Larry Basford said, Circuit Court Judge Brantley Clark sentenced Brayon Stevenson to 12 years in prison on each count. They will run consecutively, or back-to-back, for a total sentence of 36 years. He also was designated as a Sexual Predator.

Prosecutor JP Ferreira said the verdict and sentence send an important message: it is a crime for an adult to have sex with a minor under any circumstances –in this case while supplying and using marijuana and alcohol with the victim.

“Our laws are designed to protect juveniles who are vulnerable to predatory adults who would commit acts like this against a 13-year-old,” Ferreira said. “It does not matter if a minor is willingly drinking or using marijuana, an adult knows better, our laws recognize that, and the penalties are harsh.”

The victim’s mother first reported the sexual activity in 2022 after discovering it via a text she received.

Ferreira, with co-prosecutor Frank Sullivan, only called 3 witnesses: the victim, another juvenile who was with the defendant and victim on portions of the rides, and the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center staff member who interviewed the victim.

The victim said she met the defendant on Snapchat in 2022 while looking for someone to sell her marijuana. She said she and a friend rode around with the defendant and smoked marijuana. The defendant continued this pattern, she said, but on multiple occasions he dropped her friend off first, leaving her alone with him.

As the investigation – involving Panama City Beach Police, Springfield Police, and the Bay County Sheriff’s Office – continued, evidence showed the defendant would drop off the friend and then drive to various locations and engage in sex with the victim.

Basford thanked the multiple agencies involved for their work and collaboration.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

A traffic stop that turned into a drug bust last year, led to a 15-year prison sentence Wednesday for a Panama City man charged with Trafficking in Methamphetamine and Fentanyl, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Anthony Allen Polly, 43, of Panama City, was also fined a combined $150,000 by Circuit Court Judge Brantley Clark under Florida’s enhanced penalties for drug trafficking. He also must serve a minimum-mandatory 7 years.

Polly was one of multiple people arrested during a 3-day investigation by the Panama City Police Department. Two other defendants have pled and been sentenced to prison; two await trial.

Prosecutor Frank Sullivan said the pleas entered by three of the defendants showed the strength of the case put together by Panama City Police and its narcotics unit.

“The alertness of the officer who initiated the traffic stop helped lead to the discovery of drugs in that vehicle,” Prosecutor Frank Sullivan said. “The investigation and surveillance initiated by the city culminated two days later with a search warrant being served on this defendant and multiple arrests, with three defendants now in prison.”

Sullivan was prepared to present witnesses and evidence proving that on April 4, 2024, a woman was pulled over for a traffic violation and not wearing her seatbelt near Polly’s apartment. She behaved erratically, and K9 Rambo alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle.

The driver told police she was hiding three plastic baggies in her underwear. The contents tested positive for methamphetamine, fentanyl, and Clonazepam. She told police she bought the drugs from defendant Polly.

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Police set up surveillance on the apartment and obtained a search warrant. On April 6 they saw the defendant exit his apartment and get into a truck that had parked in front for about 5 minutes.

The truck left and was pulled over for a traffic violation. K9 Rambo alerted for the presence of drugs and police found a large amount of fentanyl and methamphetamine in the truck.

Officers then served the search warrant on Polly’s residence and found about 78 grams of methamphetamine in 4 baggies, and nearly 17 grams of fentanyl. The defendant admitted to selling the drugs to the woman who was arrested three days earlier.

Basford thanked Panama City Police for their proactive work and quick reaction that resulted in the arrests and seizures.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

A Panama City man found passed out in his car with drugs and paraphernalia visible was sentenced to 54 months in prison today, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Avery Lane McSwain, 44, pled No Contest to Trafficking in Methamphetamine (more than 14 grams), Possession of a Controlled Substance, and Possession of Paraphernalia. Circuit Court Judge Timothy Register accepted the plea and sentence, which includes a 3-year minimum-mandatory under Florida’s enhanced drug statutes. The defendant was also fined $50,000.

Prosecutor Jeff Moore was prepared to call witnesses and introduce evidence that the defendant was in possession of the drugs in his car on June 2, 2024.

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Bay County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. J. Turner and Deputy D. Heape were on patrol that morning when they saw the defendant’s vehicle on the shoulder of Big Daddy drive with the defendant “slumped over” in front of the steering wheel

The deputies stopped to check on the man’s welfare and could see a piece of tin foil with suspected drug residue, a straw used to snort drugs, a clear baggie with powder in it, and a lighter. They awakened the defendant and asked him to exit the vehicle.

In the pocket of the opened driver’s door, deputies saw a baggie of a clear substance that turned out to be about 21 grams of methamphetamine.

The defendant has a long history of drug-related arrests and previously served a short prison term for possession of heroin.

Basford thanked the Bay County Sheriff’s Office deputies for their proactive efforts on patrol.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

 

A Georgia woman was found guilty of Vehicular Homicide Friday evening in the 2022 death of a motorcyclist during Thunder Beach 2022, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Tammi Michelle Hornsby, 50, of Senoia, Ga., was found guilty in the death of David Wayne Wooten, 47, of Douglasville, Ga. The jury deliberated for about 3 hours after two days of testimony. Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay set sentencing for Nov. 4. Vehicular Homicide is a Second-Degree Felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Chief Assistant State Attorney Mark Graham and Prosecutor Jack Lyons called 5 witnesses and presented evidence – including video of the collision. They proved Wooten died April 30, 2022, when Hornsby’s speeding Jeep struck his motorcycle as he tried to cross Thomas Drive to turn left from Silver Sands Road.

The vehicles erupted in a ball of fire, creating a chaotic scene as witnesses from nearby businesses rushed to offer aid. The evidence showed Hornsby, westbound on Thomas Drive, was driving about 30 mph over the speed limit, crossing lanes, had been drinking, and did not take any evasive action until .8 seconds before impact.

“Let’s get one thing straight right here,” Graham told jurors in his closing argument. “But for her speeding, Mr. Wooten would still be alive today and we wouldn’t be here. We have her speeding, we have her impaired, we have her driving 64 mph during bike week in a 35 mph zone. We have her crossing not just one, but one, two, three street walks with signs.”

“He could’ve safely crossed if she was going 35 mph, but she wasn’t, she was going almost double that, and that’s the problem.”

Wooten was southbound at Thomas Drive on his motorcycle waiting to turn left. Surveillance video from nearby businesses showed the victim waiting as one car passed at what appeared to be a normal speed. As Wooten crossed the intersection, the defendant’s car appears from the east at a high rate of speed, hitting the victim as he was almost across the intersection.

He suffered severe head injuries and was pronounced dead at the hospital.

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Trooper Cory Guster testified that the defendant smelled of alcohol, showed clear signs of being under the influence, refused to take a field sobriety test, and refused to take a breathalyzer.

“Put together all her actions, how she was driving, the circumstances,” Graham said. “She knew she’d been drinking, she knew she was speeding. She flat-out told (the trooper) no when asked to take the test. Her normal faculties were impaired.”

Trooper Samuel Ellis’ Traffic Homicide Investigation and data retrieved from the defendant’s Event Data Recorder in her jeep showed she was going 64 mph 5 seconds before the impact and didn’t apply the brakes until .8 seconds before impact.

It all added up to one thing, Graham said: But for the defendant’s high rate of speed and impaired ability to react, the wreck never would have occurred.

Basford thanked the Florida Highway Patrol for its work on the case and the eyewitnesses who came forward for testifying.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

 

 

 

BONIFAY – A man who pulled a gun and shot an unarmed man rather than “lose a fight” was sentenced to 30 years in prison Wednesday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Matthew Ryan Peoples, 35, was found guilty as charged of Second-Degree Murder last month by a jury that also found he was armed with and used a firearm. Circuit Court Judge Russell Roberts explained during sentencing that under Florida’s 10-20-Life law, the sentence could range from a minimum-mandatory 25 years up to Life.

Prosecutor Peter Overstreet asked for a Life sentence.

“I don’t make any secret that I’m kind of an eye-for-eye kind of person, and I think the appropriate sentence is Life,” he said. “I think if you take a life, you better be willing to give up your own.”

The victim’s mother wrote a victim impact statement that Overstreet read to the court.

“The day you killed my son, you killed a piece of me as well,” she wrote. “I’ll never be the same. I cry every day because I miss him so much.”

After the sentencing, she thanked Overstreet for advocating for her son and the family.

“Mr. Overstreet did a wonderful job for us, he was there for us and we’re grateful that he worked so hard on this,” she said. “We knew someone cared.”

The defense asked for the minimum 25-year sentence. Judge Roberts handed down a 30-year sentence and added probation for life along with restitution.

RELATED: Peoples guilty of shooting unarmed man

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At the July trial, Overstreet and Prosecutor Jacob Cook called 10 witnesses and presented evidence proving that the defendant shot Pate, who was unarmed, after an evening of verbal disturbances between the victim and the defendant’s sister.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The defendant, 35, claimed the victim, 30, had threatened to beat him up and was walking toward him, aggressively on Sept. 4, 2023, when the shot was fired.

“This was an avoidable tragedy, 100 percent avoidable,” Overstreet said. “But the defendant chose to involve a gun from the outset … he was like a cowboy. He’s calling out to the victim, basically whacking the hornet’s nest, and then is surprised when Mr. Pate reacts so he shoots him.”

Basford thanked the Bonifay Police Department for its response and initial investigation, along with the Holmes County Sheriff’s Office for its assistance.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

The Bay County dealer who supplied the fentanyl that caused the overdose death of a Chipley woman has been sentenced to the maximum 15 years in prison, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Amber Rae Grant, 39, pled guilty to Manslaughter Thursday and was sentenced by Circuit Court Judge Timothy Register. The charge is a Second-Degree Felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison. The victim would have turned 46 today, Aug. 15.

“This case shows that we and our law enforcement partners will hold drug dealers accountable for the consequences of their choices,” said Prosecutor Peter Overstreet. “The Bay County Sheriff’s Office conducted a thorough and diligent investigation from the start that helped enable us to settle this case. Fentanyl is a powerful and deadly drug, and those selling it can face severe consequences.”

Overstreet was prepared to call witnesses and present evidence proving that Grant sold the victim .3 grams of fentanyl and .3 grams of methamphetamine in exchange for some stolen clothes on Sept. 10, 2023.

The evidence would have shown the exchange took place in the Callaway area. The victim snorted the fentanyl and quickly began to show signs of overdosing. Bay County Sheriff’s Office investigators interviewed friends of the victim as well as the defendant about what happened next.

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The defendant said she thought she had Narcan – a medication used to rapidly reverse the effects of an opioid overdose – at her home so she used the victim’s car to drive her there. But she could not find the Narcan and the victim continued to show signs of overdosing. Friends drove the victim to a parent’s house where aid was attempted until law enforcement and medical personnel arrived.

Medical examiner reports showed the victim had 125 ng/ml of fentanyl in her blood – a lethal dose is 3 ng/ml – and was the cause of her death.

The BCSO Special Investigations Division served a search warrant on the defendant’s home

Sept. 23, 2023, and found 9.2 grams of methamphetamine in one baggie, 1.9 grams of fentanyl in another baggie, 4 oxycodone pills, and nearly 3 dozen suboxone pills.

Basford thanked BCSO for its thorough approach and investigation.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

MARIANNA – A man who chased and assaulted his female friend and a woman trying to help her escape him has been sentenced to 48 months in prison, Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Kenneth Allen Polk, 42, of Slocomb, Ala., was found guilty June 25 of two counts of Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon. He was arrested by Jackson County Sheriff’s Office deputies after he pursued the women in a vehicle from Alabama. Circuit Court Judge Ana Maria Garcia Tuesday sentenced Polk to 48 months in prison.

Prosecutor Lawrence Gill along with co-counsel Jake Mitchell called four witnesses – including the two victims and the first Jackson County Sheriff’s Office deputy on the scene – and presented evidence proving the defendant committed the crimes on Dec. 10, 2022, during an outing that began in Alabama.

“This has been an emotional and frightening ordeal for both victims and we are glad to see the defendant is going to pay a price for his decisions that day,” Gill said. “This was a nightmare for them and we hope this helps bring them some peace.”

The evidence showed the defendant and the first victim, his “on-again, off-again” girlfriend, were in Dothan, Ala., on Dec. 10, 2022. They were in the woman’s car, with the defendant driving, when Polk started an argument that began to turn physical.

RELATED: Polk guilty of Aggravated Assault charges

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When Polk stopped the car at an intersection with U.S. 231 in Alabama, the victim broke away and ran to a car that was behind them in traffic for help. That female driver let the woman in and left driving south toward Florida.

The evidence showed Polk aggressively chased the women into Florida while they were on the phone with 911. He forced them off the road and tried to get in the car when they again escaped, eventually taking refuge in a store until Jackson County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrived.

Basford thanked the 911 operator and Jackson County Sheriff’s Office for their response to and handling of the situation.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

A Panama City man who solicited a female juvenile for sex was found guilty as charged Tuesday and sentenced to 54 months in prison, State Attorney Larry Basford said.

A jury took about 10 minutes of deliberation to find Juan Montes Martinez, 50, guilty of Solicitation of a Minor for Sexual Conduct. Circuit Court Judge Dustin Stephenson adjudicated the defendant guilty and handed down the sentence.

Prosecutor Morgan McAfee called two witnesses – the victim and the responding Panama City Police Officer – to prove the defendant’s guilt.

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The evidence included texts the defendant sent the victim in August 2024 offering to pay her weekly for sexual activity. The victim did not respond. The defendant next texted her to delete the previous message.

Instead, police were contacted.

The defendant has a lengthy arrest record over the last 20 years for crimes ranging from Battery to Aggravated Assault with a Weapon – with the latter landing him a 3-year prison term in 2012.

Basford thanked the Panama City Police Department for its work on the case, and the victim for coming forward and testifying.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.