The Lincoln Parish Sheriff’s Department arrested a Ruston man on the Grambling State University campus Sunday last Sunday after he was stopped for traffic violations and drugs were found in his car and in the backseat of a patrol car he had been sitting in during the investigation.
Joshua O. Owens, 31, was arrested October 20 on traffic violations and drug and weapon charges.
After the stop, a search was conducted of Owens‘s vehicle. During that time, Owens was seated in the backseat of a patrol car. He was transferred to another patrol car for transport to the Lincoln Parish Detention Center.
The deputy operating the first vehicle later found a bag containing marijuana and several forms of alprazolam, a Schedule IV controlled substance. The back seat had been checked at the beginning of the deputy’s shift to ensure there were no weapons or contraband present. Owens was the only person who had been in the backseat.
A deputy returned to the detention center and added new charges based on the discovery.
Owens’s charges include possession of marijuana, possession of alprazolam, possession of drug paraphernalia, violation of the drug free zone law, illegal carrying of weapons in the presence of a controlled substance, obstruction of justice, and several traffic charges. His bail was set at $55,150.
This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named or shown in photographs or video as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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