An Ocala man who was sleeping outside a Publix store Thursday morning was arrested after a deputy found his stash of methamphetamine when she went to give him a cigarette.
Zachary Aaron Grolemund, 30, of 527 Bahia Circle, was charged with possession of methamphetamine and is also being held on an active warrant for petit theft.
Marion County sheriff’s deputies responded around 7:15 a.m. to the Publix at 7578 SE Maricamp Road, where they found Grolemund sleeping next to the ATM machine outside the store. Grolemund was awakened and patted down after he said he had a knife, according to the sheriff’s office report.
Grolemund gave deputies his name and a computer search revealed a possible active warrant. While one deputy was confirming the warrant, Grolemund asked another deputy for a cigarette. When the deputy opened the cigarette box, she found a small plastic bag of what appeared to be methamphetamine, the report said.
Grolemund admitted the substance was methamphetamine and said he had two syringes in his pocket. One of the syringes contained a clear liquid that field tested positive for meth. Grolemund was taken to the Marion County Jail, where he’s being held on $6,000 bond. He’ll appear in Marion County Court on Jan. 27 for the petit theft charge and Jan. 28 for the drug charge.