RICHMOND – A traffic stop on Interstate 70 led to the arrest of two individuals and the confiscation of approximately fifteen grams of suspected fentanyl during the early morning hours of August 7, 2025.
At about 1:30 a.m., Wayne County Dispatch received a report of a blue vehicle hitting a guardrail near the 150-mile marker of Interstate 70 westbound and continuing west. Trooper Jake Ridgway of the Indiana State Police Pendleton District found the vehicle stopped in the roadway near the 146-mile marker.
As Trooper Ridgway approached the vehicle, he found both the driver and passenger unconscious inside. While checking their welfare, Trooper Ridgway saw a small plastic bag containing a white powdery substance visible between the passenger’s legs. The substance is suspected to be fentanyl, a potent synthetic opioid.
After removing both occupants from the vehicle, Trooper Ridgway conducted Standardized Field Sobriety Tests on the driver. The driver, identified as Justin C. Dawson, 45, of Connersville, was subsequently arrested and preliminarily charged with possession of a narcotic drug, a Level 4 felony; possession of a controlled substance, a Class A misdemeanor; operating a vehicle while intoxicated, OWI; and endangering, a Class A misdemeanor and operating a vehicle while intoxicated controlled substance, a Class C misdemeanor.
The passenger, identified as Roxanne N. Steele, 43, of Connersville, was arrested and preliminarily charged with possession of a narcotic drug, a Level 4 felony, and possession of a controlled substance, a Class A misdemeanor.
Both individuals were transported to the Wayne County Jail without incident. The suspected fentanyl was seized as evidence and will be submitted to the Indiana State Police Laboratory for further analysis.
Trooper Ridgway was assisted at the scene by additional troopers from the Indiana State Police Pendleton District and deputies from the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office.
All suspects listed in this news release are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt by a jury in a court of law.
