Man arrested with 51 bags of pot on bond for similar charges

March 30, 2018 at 12:02a.m.

YOUNGSTOWN

A man who police said had 51 bags of suspected marijuana when he was arrested Wednesday at his Lanterman Avenue home was free on bail on other drug charges, where it is also alleged he had a significant amount of marijuana.

Deon Johnson, 26, is in the Mahoning County jail on charges of trafficking in drugs, tampering with evidence and possession of drug paraphernalia after members of the vice squad and Community Police Unit served a search warrant about 12:55 p.m. at his home.

Reports said officers found a scale on a shelf and then followed a trail of bags that had marijuana in them to a bathroom, where they found Johnson and some bags of marijuana in the toilet. Johnson also had $672 cash on him, reports said.

Johnson is expected to be arraigned today in municipal court.

Johnson was free on a recognizance bond that was given to him when he was arraigned Jan. 22 in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court on a felony-three charge of trafficking in drugs and a felony four charge of improper handling of firearms in a motor vehicle.

Those charges stem from a Dec. 1 traffic stop in Austintown, where officers found 300 grams of marijuana and two guns. Court records note that prosecutors did not object to the motion for a recognizance bond when it was requested by defense attorneys. His bond after his arrest was $55,000.

He pleaded guilty Feb. 23 to both charges. Court records show prosecutors are recommending probation as a sentence in that case.