A Florida man strikes out after pulling onto the scene of a law enforcement drug operation on Friday and being recognized by deputies.
According to officials, Citrus County Sheriff’s Office Tactical Impact Unit (TIU) and the SWAT team served a search warrant at the residence of a Mr. Chad Ross, located at 2460 S. Ignot Pt in Lecanto, Florida.
During the search, detectives located cocaine, methamphetamine, suboxone, and marijuana along with numerous items, which are used to distribute illicit narcotics.
As a result of the narcotics and other illegal contraband found at the scene, all occupants to include Ross were arrested and transported to the Citrus County Detention Center.
The following subjects were arrested and charged accordingly:
- Chad Ross 2/17/80 – possession of controlled substance; bond of $2,000
- Brian Fahey 7/13/84 – possession of drug paraphernalia; bond of $1,000
- Brittany Lettieri 4/11/94 – possession of drug paraphernalia; bond of $1,000
- Shannon Spangler 9/10/80 – possession of drug paraphernalia; bond of $1,000
While still on scene, CCSO Detectives and SWAT team members observed a blue Nissan Altima pull into the residence.
Detectives on the scene immediately recognized the driver of the vehicle as 23-year-old Mario Farmer Jr.
Farmer, a convicted felon and known drug dealer who resides in Sumter County, has an extensive criminal history, which includes 31 felony arrests to be exact.
Sales of cocaine, fleeing and eluding, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon are just a few of those 31 arrests. Most of Farmer’s arrests were violent in nature or involved firearms. Additionally, Farmer had active warrants for his arrest out of Sumter County.
While attempting to place Farmer into custody, he fled the scene in his vehicle with Sheriff’s Office personnel in pursuit. His flight was very short-lived, and pursuing deputies immobilized his vehicle quickly. Once he realized he could not flee by vehicle, he attempted to flee on foot. With the assistance of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office aviation unit and CCSO’s K-9 unit, Farmer was taken into custody without further incident.
During the vehicle pursuit, deputies and detectives observed Farmer throwing multiple items out of the window, which were later identified as illegal narcotics. Detectives diligently searched the area and were able to recover all of the narcotics discarded by Farmer.
These narcotics included over 3 ounces (approximately 88.1 grams) of methamphetamine, 4 grams of heroin, and 8.6 grams of cocaine. Also located in Farmer’s vehicle, and in his possession, was over $8,800 in U.S. currency.
In addition to his Citrus County charges, Farmer was also arrested on active Sumter County warrants. Currently, Farmer was transported to the Citrus County Detention Facility, and charged with the following:
- Trafficking in Methamphetamine
- Trafficking in Heroin
- Possession of Cocaine w/ Intent to Distribute
- Fleeing and Eluding Law Enforcement
Farmer’s bond was set at $66,000 per the bond schedule.
“Drug dealers, beware! If you sell deadly narcotics in our county, you will be arrested,” warns Sheriff Mike Prendergast. “Criminals like Mario Farmer Jr. have blatantly disregarded the safety of citizens in both Citrus and Sumter Counties. We will not stand for it. Every day, we strive to make Citrus County a safer place to live as we continue our fight against illegal narcotics and the many dangers associated with them.”
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