MIDDLEBURY — About 18 grams of heroin and $13,725 in cash have been seized following a traffic stop by the Addison County Sheriff’s Department, court records show.
Lamont Hudgkins, 35, of Staten Island, N.Y., has pleaded innocent in Vermont Superior Court, criminal division, in Middlebury to charges of heroin trafficking, conspiracy to traffic in heroin and possession of 10 ounces of marijuana — all felonies. He was initially jailed for lack of $75,000 bail, but has since been released on a bail bond with conditions.
Court records show Hudgkins, also known as “Bam” and “Shorty B,” has at least 14 felony arrests in New York for cases involving drugs and firearms between 1996 and 2011.
The heroin could have generated more than 700 bags for street sale distribution, Deputy Sheriff Jill Grant said in court records about the joint investigation.
Williston Police Officer Travis Trybulski developed reliable information that a red Chevrolet Malibu with tinted windows was headed south and believed to have illegal drugs and a large amount of cash, court records show.
Grant said she was in a fully marked Addison County Sheriff’s Department cruiser running radar on Route 22A in the town of Addison when she stopped a southbound vehicle matching the description on April 20. She said the tinted front windows are a violation of Vermont law.
Hudgkins was a backseat passenger of a man and woman from Chittenden County. They were not charged. The driver said he was being paid to give Hudgkins a ride to New York, records show.
Vermont State Police Cpl. Justin Busby and his drug-certified K-9, Vincent, arrived at the scene and they were soon joined by Bristol Police Officer Joshua Otey. Busby deployed his dog, which did a detailed exterior sniff of the car and had positive reactions at a couple of locations, court records show.
Vincent is certified to detect seven drugs — cocaine, crack, heroin, hashish, marijuana, methamphetamine and ecstasy — Busby said in a court affidavit.
Hudgkins displayed nervous behavior throughout the traffic stop and appeared concerned with any comments the other two people in the car might be telling police, Grant said.
Grant took Hudgkins to a holding cell at the Vergennes Police Department, where he apparently tried to dispose of the drugs in a toilet, Grant said. Grant said Hudgkins was acting suspicious around the toilet and Otey later went into the cell and checked. He found the heroin mixed in with feces and toilet paper and seized the evidence, Grant said.
The marijuana and money were found in the car, Grant said.