Alachua County Sheriff’s deputies arrested a Lake Butler man Sunday night after he reportedly tried to hide cocaine in his butt during a search.
At about 9:50 p.m., Michael James, 41, rode his bicycle through the 7000 block of SW Archer Rd. without lights, according to a police report.
An officer reportedly stopped James for the lights and gave him a warning. The officer noticed James acting nervously and asked to search him.
He agreed, but James reached for his groin several times during the search and told the officer about a pipe in his belt, according to the report.
The officer handcuffed James and reportedly felt something near his groin, but James still tried to hide the object.
He managed to move the object backward, almost between his butt cheeks, until the officer pushed James’ hands up his back, according to the report.
The officer eventually found the object — a pill bottle reportedly holding four pieces of crack cocaine weighing a total of .8 grams.
James was found guilty on two counts of larceny in April and one count of larceny in 2011, according to Alachua County court records.
Police charged James with cocaine possession and took him to the Alachua County Jail where, as of press time, he remains in lieu of a $30,000 bond.
Contact Giuseppe Sabella at gsabella@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @gsabella
