MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
a division of the
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

Troop G Headquarters-1226 W. Bus. Highway 60/63-Willow Springs, MO 65793


News Release

For further information please contact: Sergeant Martin K. Elmore
417-469-3121, Ext. 3735
G-03121
March 20, 2012

EMPHASIS: Traffic Stop Results In Drug Arrest



On March 3, 2012, at 5:35 p.m., a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper and members of the South Central Drug Task Force initiated a traffic enforcement stop on U.S. Highway 60 west of Cabool, Missouri. The vehicle, a 2004 Ford F-150, was occupied by two male subjects. The driver and passenger exhibited suspicious behavior, and a subsequent search of the vehicle resulted in the seizure of 4.25 ounces of methamphetamine. The driver of the vehicle, Raymond Doyle Smotherman, 46, Birch Tree, Missouri, was arrested for an outstanding Carter County warrant and possession of a controlled substance. As a result of the traffic stop and following investigation, Raymond Doyle Smotherman was charged in Texas County for felony possession of a controlled substance.
The charges for which this individual was arrested are mere accusations and are not evidence of guilt. Evidence in support of the charges must be presented before a court of competent jurisdiction whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
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