A Florida man with a long criminal record is behind bars after a minor traffic stop.
According to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, deputies spotted a white Mazda 3 in the parking lot of a convenience store in Bunnell, about 20 miles north of Daytona Beach, around noon on Sunday, Aug. 6.
The car’s passenger window tint was darker than Florida law allows.
Deputy sheriffs pressed their hazard lights and sirens as they tried to pull over the driver as the car sped away, but the driver did not stop for 48 seconds, the police report says.
After the driver finally complied, he was identified as Christopher Heath. The 40-year-old Palm Coast man has a long criminal record in Flagler County, including previous arrests for battery, grand larceny and violent resistance against an officer, the sheriff’s office noted in a Facebook post about the incident.
READ MORE: He was stopped in Florida for not having headlights, after which the police searched his truck
The police report says that when Heath got out of his car, he smelled of marijuana.
The suspect agreed to a search of his vehicle, where deputies discovered a small orange container “usually used by medical professionals to dispense pills” in his center console.
The defendant said the bottle of “Bag Balm” contained moisturizer given to him by his mother, the affidavit says, but a field test revealed that the golden brown oily substance tested positive for fentanyl and THC. A flashlight and scales commonly associated with narcotics use were also discovered in the car.
READ MORE: Florida man arrested after throwing drugs under patrol car
As he was about to be arrested, Heath told deputies he thought he was having a heart attack and needed a doctor.
“He was checked at the scene by a medical unit but could not be adequately evaluated due to his actions and behavior,” the Facebook post read.
He was then taken to the hospital and after being “medically cleared,” taken to Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility on $1,000 bond.
Heath, who was on federal probation at the time of his arrest, was charged with possession of fentanyl and hashish, possession of paraphernalia and disobeying law enforcement.
“This poison peddler is a serial criminal and will not learn his lesson,” Flagler Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement. “It’s time for him to turn his life around or face a serious prison sentence.”
