A man suspected of swallowing methamphetamine during a traffic stop in Wythe County Friday night later died while in the custody of the Wythe County Sheriff's Office.
Deputies were tipped off about a suspected intoxicated driver in the Ivanhoe community around 11:30 Friday night. A traffic stop was made on a Chevy that deputies say was traveling on the wrong side of Painters Hill Road.
The driver, 47-year-old Nickie L. Vaughan, of Fries, Virginia, was reported to have uncontrollable movements while speaking with deputies, and one deputy noted a strong odor of alcohol coming from the vehicle. She was asked to exit the car for a field sobriety test. A deputy reported seeing her with a clenched fist, and he later reported finding a bag of methamphetamine.
Vaughan was then taken into custody.
The passenger of the vehicle, 49-year-old John Junior Brown, told deputies he was the one who had been drinking. He was placed into the back of the patrol car while a field sobriety test was administered to Vaughan. Deputies reported finding no narcotics in the car.
During Vaughan's field sobriety test, Brown began kicking the door of the patrol car, saying he was suffocating. Brown was removed from the car and placed on his feet, but he collapsed and began shaking, deputies say.
Medical personnel was called, as deputies reportedly believed Brown to be suffering a seizure, but Brown stopped breathing and CPR was then administered. Narcan was also administered, but Brown was deceased.
Vaughan reportedly told deputies they did have meth in the car, and that she suspected Brown had swallowed the narcotics so we wouldn't be caught with them.
Brown's body was taken to the Medical Examiner's Office for an autopsy to determine his cause of death.
Virginia State Police and the Wythe County Sheriff's Office Investigations Division are investigating and say body camera footage will be reviewed to determine if Brown swallowed anything.
Vaughan was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of drugs, possession of Schedule I/II narcotics, refusal of a blood or breath test and reckless driving.