Meth suspected in bicyclist’s stocking

By JESSIE STENSLAND
Whidbey News Times Assistant editor
February 14, 2012 · Updated 2:27 PM 

A 42-year-old Coupeville man who was allegedly caught bicycling with methamphetamine in his sock is wanted on a $10,000 arrest warrant.

Prosecutors charged Sean Berg in Island County Superior Court Jan. 23 with possession of methamphetamine. Judge Alan Hancock authorized the warrant after Berg didn’t appear at a Feb. 6 hearing.

According to a report by Oak Harbor Police Officer Cedric Niiro, a deputy with the Island County Sheriff’s Office stopped Berg while he was bicycling  near Kmart in Oak Harbor at 5 a.m. last Sept. 17. Berg was wanted on two warrants at the time, court documents indicate.

Niiro took custody of Berg and placed him in the patrol car. But before they left, Berg confessed that he had narcotics in his boots, Niiro wrote in his report on the incident.

A jailer later found a plastic bag containing a crystalline substance in Berg’s sock. A laboratory analysis later confirmed that it was 0.4 grams of meth, according to court documents.

If convicted of the charge, Berg could face up to two years in jail under the standard sentencing range. The police report states that he has an extensive criminal history, which increases the sentence range.

 

Contact Whidbey News Times Assistant editor Jessie Stensland at jstensland@whidbeynewsgroup.com or 360.675.6611 ext. 5056.

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