Woman facing drug, weapon charges after traffic stop

TORRINGTON — A city woman is facing drug and weapons charges after police say they found her in possession of fentanyl, marijuana and brass knuckles during a recent traffic stop.

Joyce L. Arichabala, 43, of 30 Meadow Brook Lane, was arrested Dec. 8 and charged with use/ possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of narcotics, possession of less than four ounces of marijuana, failure to obey stop sign and illegal possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle.

Arichabala was pulled over by two officers after they saw her vehicle fail to stop at the stop sign at the intersection of East Albert St. and Harwinton Ave., according to a probable cause report.

In response to being questioned as to whether she had illegal substances in the vehicle, Arichabala told the officers she had marijuana in a purse, according to the report.

Officers searched the vehicle and found “two small cut plastic straws” containing a white powdery substance, wax bags suspected to have previously contained heroin, two small plastic bags of a brown powdery substance, a clear glass pipe with burnt ends, marijuana and brass knuckles, police said.

The brown powdery substance was later tested and “resulted in a presumptive positive test for being (fentanyl),” police said.

Arichabala was released on a $500 surety bond and is scheduled to appear in Superior Court in Torrington on Jan. 3. According to state records, she has not yet entered a plea to any of the charges.

Illegal possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle is considered a class D felony in Connecticut.