CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WNCN) — Two Henderson men are facing felony drug charges after an Orange County Sheriff’s deputy made a traffic stop of a suspicious vehicle in Chapel Hill on Tuesday night.
Shortly before midnight, a deputy saw a vehicle driving slowly behind Ram’s Plaza shopping center at 1728 Fordham Blvd., according to the sheriff’s office.
After running the tag and observing the driver, the deputy had reason to believe the operator of the vehicle was driving with a revoked license.
Following the subsequent investigation, deputies arrested the driver and passenger on multiple offenses, including charges related to 14 grams of fentanyl packaged in small bindles, which were concealed in the trunk, according to the sheriff’s office.
The driver, 21-year-old Jatavious O’shaw Boyd, was charged with:
- Two felony counts of drug trafficking,
- Felony possession of a schedule I controlled substance,
- Felony possession with intent to sell and deliver,
- Maintaining a vehicle for the use, storage, and sale of a controlled substance, and
- Driving while license revoked.
Boyd also had an outstanding warrant for failure to appear in court in Granville County for charges of possession of marijuana, driving while license revoked and a rear-tail lamp violation. Boyd was placed in the Orange County Detention Center in Hillsborough under a $52,000 secured bond.
The passenger, 21-year-old Demarius Rymick Vass, faces the same charges with the exception of driving while license revoked, and has an additional charge for possession of marijuana. He was placed in the detention center under a $25,000 bond.
Both had a court date Wednesday afternoon.
In addition to the drugs, deputies also seized a firearm and multiple cell phones, the sheriff’s office said.
“This case provides a great example of why it is important that we engage in proactive policing. The deputy recognized unusual and suspicious behavior, used resources available to him, and determined the driver was not duly licensed. This led to the traffic stop which resulted in the discovery of multiple criminal offenses, and ultimately prevented a significant amount of a dangerous drug from entering our community,” Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood said.