BEDFORD – A Salem man was arrested on Tuesday, October 10, on drug charges after an Indiana State Trooper stopped his vehicle for driving on a suspended driver’s license.
Trooper Caleb Garvin stopped the black GMC Yukon SUV on State Road 37 just north of the intersection of Old State Road 37.
As the trooper approached the vehicle he noticed two firearms in the vehicle.
The driver 32-year-old Miguel Padilla, told police he was traveling to Chicago to visit his father. The trooper then noticed Padilla’s fingernails. His pinky fingernail was very long and all the rest were short. The trooper noted that was common for someone who was involved with meth or cocaine use.
Instead of a straw or other instrument to ingest the illegal substance, individuals will scoop and inhale the drug from a long fingernail.
Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department deputy Drew Phillips arrived on the scene with canine Scout who alerted police to drugs in the vehicle.
In Padilla’s wallet, the officers found a dollar bill that contained a white powder substance that tested positive for cocaine. They also seized a digital scale, a Rock Island Armory .45 Auto semi-automatic handgun with a round in the chamber, and a Smith & Wesson .40-caliber semi-automatic handgun which was not loaded.
Padilla was arrested on a felony charge of possession of cocaine or a narcotic drug while armed with a firearm.
The vehicle was towed by Stone City Service and Collision Center.
