PANAMA CITY — Hiding drugs in your pants won’t make them disappear, as one Georgia woman has learned, according to a Bay County Sheriff’s Office news release.
Amanda Upchurch, 35, and Donald Wachsmann, 56, were arrested Tuesday on numerous drug-related charges following a traffic stop in which officers discovered significant amounts of illegal narcotics and money in their pants and a Dodge Ram the two occupied, BCSO reported. Upchurch faced additional charges after officers allegedly discovered she had not only hidden contraband in her pants.
K-9 officers allegedly detected the presence of narcotics during the traffic stop at about 2 p.m. near 18th Street and Isabella Avenue.
When asked to exit the vehicle, Upchurch, the passenger in the truck, allegedly shoved a pink pouch down her pants. When asked about it, she responded in a vulgar, graphic manner and refused to turn the item over, BCSO reported. After a lengthy discussion, a female officer retrieved the pouch, which held ICE methamphetamine, about $300, marijuana and prescription pills, officials said.
A search of the vehicle also allegedly yielded 3 ounces of crystal methamphetamine,14 various prescription pills, a small quantity of marijuana and a syringe among other paraphernalia, BCSO reported.
The duo allegedly were headed back to Georgia from Bay County, officials said. Wachsmann told investigators he drove to Bay County with Upchurch to sell methamphetamine. Combined they had more than $13,000 on them and in the car, investigators reported.
Both were charged with trafficking in more than 14 grams of methamphetamine, possession of an opium derivative with intent to distribute, unlawful possession of prescription pills, possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Upchurch additionally was charged with introduction of contraband into Bay County Jail, tampering with evidence and giving the false name of “Ashley Roebuck” to law enforcement. While being booked, officers also discovered Upchurch had inserted a glass pipe containing methamphetamine residue into a bodily cavity, officers reported.
Upchurch, of Ellison, Georgia, has a history with Panama City law enforcement, court records show. She was sentenced to more than a year in prison after violating her probation in 2012 connected with a drug charge, and, according to court records, she stole clothes from a T.J. Maxx and was then pulled over. During the stop, she attempted to hide 11 Soma (carisoprodol) pills from the officers by sitting on them.
Her combined bond from Tuesday’s arrest was set at $106,000, court records indicated. Wachsmann, of Marietta, Georgia, did not have a criminal history in Bay County. His combined bond was set at $93,500.