BRUNSWICK COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — A pursuit along Interstate 85 Thursday ended in a massive drug bust of $100,000 worth of crystal meth found hidden in an SUV by Brunswick County Sheriff’s deputies. Now, two people have been arrested on a slew of charges, related to not just the massive amount of illegal drugs found, but also leading police on a high-speed chase.
Joey Lopresti, Investigations Captain for the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office, told 8News the discovery came after what started as a standard traffic stop after a deputy clocked a driver going 87 miles per hour along I-85 at around 6 a.m. on Thursday, March 21.
“There’s no such a thing as a normal traffic stop,” Lopresti said. “Things can change very quickly.”
After seeing lights and sirens, the driver of the SUV, identified as 44-year-old Timothy Turner, accelerated, reaching an estimated 120 miles per hour. This launched a high-speed chase before the driver abruptly stopped in Dinwiddie County.
According to criminal defense attorney Kevin Calhoun, the legal trouble for turner extends beyond the drugs.
“The offense of eluding the police… that’s another felony,” Calhoun said. “It is less severe than the drug cases. That’s a Class 6 felony. It carries up to five years in prison.”
Officials told 8News that Turner and his passenger, Margaret West, took off running, but were quickly caught by deputies, who then obtained a search warrant and went through the car. It’s at this point where things took a drastic turn. Investigators found tubs packed to the brim with meth — a total of seven pounds of the highly addictive synthetic stimulant.
“To some degree, it speaks for itself… seven pounds is above average,” Calhoun said. “I think there’s a potential that the federal agencies might be interested in this.”
Investigators believe Turner planned to sell the drug, so he is looking at anywhere between five and 40 years behind bars – potentially even more, as the street price for the substance is projected to total a hefty $100,000.
“I’ve been doing this job almost 18 years,” Captain Lopresti said. “It’s the largest amount that I’ve seen personally.”
Before running by foot, Turner also left his car running. The vehicle rolled and hit an unmarked, empty, Brunswick County Sheriff’s deputy’s car.
Officials explained how the chase resulted in multiple cars speeding and weaving through approximately ten miles worth of innocent drivers with one of the deadliest drugs tucked inside.
“We’re very blessed that nobody was injured,” Captain Lopresti said. “It could have turned out differently very quickly, and to get that a large amount of crystal methamphetamine off of our streets, I think we’ve saved a lot of potential harm.”
After the arrests were made, officials learned both Turner and West were wanted for a total of more than a dozen other charges across Chesterfield County and Henrico County. Both are being held without bond.
