A 60-year-old man is facing a drug trafficking charge after a plastic bag containing oxycodone pills was found inside his vehicle during a traffic stop in Ocala.
On Monday, a Marion County Sheriff’s Office corporal was on patrol near the intersection of SE Maricamp Road and SE Pine Road when a dark BMW sedan was observed on SE Pine Road. At the intersection, the sedan made a left turn onto SE Maricamp Road, and the driver – later identified as Keith King – accelerated quickly and began following another vehicle too closely, according to the MCSO report.
The corporal noted in the report that the distance between King’s sedan and the vehicle in front of it appeared to be less than a car length while both vehicles traveled at approximately 55 miles per hour. A traffic stop of the sedan was conducted in the 4700 block of SE Maricamp Road.
Another deputy with a K-9 partner arrived at the location of the traffic stop, and the K-9 conducted a free air sniff of the sedan’s exterior. According to the MCSO report, the K-9 detected the presence of narcotics and a search of the sedan was conducted.
During the vehicle search, the deputy located a clear plastic bag containing approximately 20 to 25 pink pills that were identified as oxycodone. The clear plastic bag was found inside the pocket of a long-sleeve shirt that had been rolled up on the back seat, according to the MCSO report.
The corporal made contact with King. After being read his Miranda rights, King admitted that the shirt belonged to him, and he advised that he had purchased the pills for someone else. The MCSO report stated that the oxycodone pills weighed seven grams, which is considered “trafficking amount.”
King was arrested, transported to Marion County Jail, and he was later released on $25,000 bond. He is facing a felony charge for trafficking in oxycodone (seven grams or more).
A court date has not been scheduled yet, according to jail records.