Five pounds of marijuana, steroids seized in Ozark

OZARK - Three out-of-state residents traveling from Florida to Pennsylvania on Tuesday had their trips rerouted by the Wiregrass Violent Crimes Task Force.

Five pounds of marijuana, valued at $10,000, was seized after officers stopped a 1996 Dodge Caravan on U.S. 231 for a seat belt violation, Ozark Police Chief Tony Spivey said.

Charged with trafficking marijuana are Aaron A. Rayoum, 19, of Orlando, Fla., Christopher M. Conrad, 18, of Martinsburg, Penn., and David W. Powell Jr., 23, of Altoona, Penn.

Each was placed in the Dale County Jail under no bond.

Spivey said another man, 39-year-old Linton Holyfield of Montgomery, was charged Monday after officers found 70 milliliters of steroids stored in the 2005 Range Rover he was driving. Holyfield was charged with possession of a controlled substance.

Spivey said Holyfield was transporting the drugs from Tampa, Fla., to Montgomery.

His vehicle was stopped for a tinted window violation, Spivey said.

“Interdiction teams are engaging more and more in efforts on a lot of highways and interstates like 10, 75, 65 and 85, so people are choosing alternate routes, even some county roads,” Spivey said.

“It’s hard work by the officers and especially the task force, but they’re able to not only provide safety to the Ozark area but also are doing someone else a favor by keeping these drugs out of their communities. Anytime you take narcotics off of the streets and they don’t make it to someone’s body, it’s big.”