Lawton police have been cracking down on the local methamphetamine distribution network.
A trio of charges filed Friday are hoped to slow the path of product to addicts, according to law enforcement.
In one connected case, a man and woman were arrested for a case involving over a half-pound of meth set for the streets.
Darrelwayne Sanderson, 64, of Lawton, and Loreli Christine Watkins, 24, of Lawton, each made initial appearances Friday in Comanche County District Court.
Sanderson was charged with felony counts of trafficking in illegal drugs, using a communication facility or telephone to facilitate the commission of a felony, to wit: trafficking illegal drugs, and possession of a firearm after two or more former felony convictions, as well as misdemeanor charges to include two counts of possession of controlled dangerous substances, and possession of drug paraphernalia, records indicate. Due to prior convictions, he faces up to 40 years in prison for the trafficking charge.
Watkins was charged with a felony count of using communication facility or telephone to facilitate the commission of a felony, to wit: trafficking methamphetamine, records indicate. The crime is punishable by up to five years in prison.
The charges stem from a Tuesday search warrant execution of Sanderson’s home at 6426 NW Compass Drive by the Lawton Police Special Operations Unit.
A search of Sanderson’s closet turned up separate packages of methamphetamine weighing 65.3 grams next to a 9mm pistol, a .22 caliber rifle and a shotgun, according to the probable cause affidavit. Over 11 grams of marijuana and a box full of syringes also were recovered. Another bag containing 203.6 grams of meth was found in the closet.
In the bedroom, more meth, marijuana and drug paraphernalia were recovered. In another closet, three more rifles were recovered, the affidavit states. Seventeen Alprazolam pills and a set of digital scales were found by investigators.
In total, 272.833 grams of meth were recovered from the sweep.
Over the course of the investigation, police found text communications between Sanderson and Watkins that are believed to have shown drug transactions, according to the charges.
A separate case follows another Special Operations Unit search warrant execution the next day.
Christina Marie Myrick, 42, of Lawton, made her initial appearance Friday in Comanche County District Court where she received a felony charge of unlawful possession of controlled drug with intent to distribute, and misdemeanor charges of possession of drug paraphernalia and destroying evidence, records indicate. She faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of the felony.
Members of the Special Operations Unit conducted a search warrant execution around 6 a.m. Wednesday at 1415 SW New York Apartment A. Investigators met with a man and woman, later determined to be Myrick, at the home.
While being detained, it was noticed the Myrick’s hands and sleeves of her shirt were wet, tipping investigators off that she was possibly flushing drugs down the toilet, according to the probable cause affidavit.
Once inside the home, officers found a pink bag in the trash can in the bathroom. Inside the pink bag was a small baggie with methamphetamine.
According to the affidavit, a black digital scale with water on it was found behind the toilet. Inside the toilet, a plastic baggie was recovered floating on top of the water and it appeared meth was at the bottom of the toilet.
A small white baggie containing meth was found inside the console of the man’s vehicle. The meth in the truck weighed 0.7 gram and another 6.2 grams were found in the pink bag, according to the affidavit.
Myrick admitted to officers she’d dumped the meth in the toilet in an attempt to destroy it, the affidavit states. She said it was approximately 14 grams of the drug that was dumped.
Myrick has a prior felony conviction in Comanche County from December 2017 for a felony count of possession of a controlled drug with intent to distribute, records indicate.
