Check on stalled vehicle leads to arrest
A check on a stalled vehicle in the roadway Wednesday morning led to the arrest of the driver on multiple felony charges after drugs and guns were allegedly found.
Ryan Nathaniel Couch, 35, who lists a Gobert Road address, was taken into custody around
7:30 a.m. and charged with felony counts of simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms, punishable by up to life in prison, possession of meth with purpose to deliver, punishable by up to 10 years, and possession of drug paraphernalia, punishable by up to six years, and misdemeanor counts of possession of marijuana with purpose to deliver and driving on a suspended driver’s license.
Couch was being held on zero bond and is set to appear today in Garland County District Court.
According to the probable cause affidavit,
Hot Springs police Cpl.
Kenny May spotted a 2013 Chevrolet Silverado truck parked in the outside northbound lane of the 1500 block of Higdon Ferry Road with its flashers on and made contact with the driver, identified as Couch, to see if he could assist him.
Couch told May he ran out of gas and when asked about his temporary tag, which expired in May, Couch said he was unable to pay the sales tax. When asked for his driver’s license, Couch “began to get nervous” and stated he did not have a license.
At that point, May noticed a rifle case in the passenger seat and asked if he had any firearms. Couch reportedly told him he had two pistols and as Couch lifted his right hand to get out of the vehicle, May noticed a pistol under his hand.
The officer detained Couch at that point and told him not to reach into the truck or his pockets. As he was being handcuffed, Couch allegedly reached into his pockets and began throwing items out of them into the roadway.
At that point, May took Couch to the ground and held him until Officer Randy Rodgers, who had arrived to assist, could confirm he had no weapons on him. May noted one of the items thrown out was a container with 5.7 grams of what later tested positive for marijuana.
Couch was searched further and May allegedly found a hollowed-out ink pen in his jacket pocket that had a large amount of white powdery residue. In the same pocket, May found a baggie with 0.3 gram of a substance that later tested positive for meth.
During a search of the vehicle, three firearms were found, including a .45-caliber pistol and a 9-mm pistol, both loaded and in the driver’s seat area, and an unloaded rifle in the passenger seat.