Habitual Offender Caught With 1/3 lbs. Of Meth On I-74

Indiana State Police got a tip from an Ohio drug task force about crystal meth being transported from Indianapolis to Cincinnati.

Billy J. Conn, Jr. Photo by Dearborn County Sheriff's Department.

(Dearborn County, Ind.) - Nearly a third of a pound of methamphetamine was seized during a traffic stop of a Harrison man on Interstate 74.

Billy Joe Conn, Jr., 34, has been charged with Dealing in Methamphetamine Over Ten Grams (level 2 felony), Possession of Methamphetamine Over Twenty-Eight Grams (level 3 felony) and a habitual offender enhancement, Dearborn-Ohio County Prosecutor Lynn Deddens announced Friday.

According to the prosecutor, Indiana State Police had received a tip from an Ohio drug task force officer that Conn was traveling from Indianapolis to Cincinnati with crystal meth. He was stopped by troopers for not signaling a lane change on I-74 in Dearborn County on Wednesday, August 29.

After a K9 officer sniffed around the vehicle and indicated the presence of drugs, troopers searched the vehicle. That led to the discovery of a clear plastic bag containing methamphetamine. The bag and its contents weight 145 grams, or just shy of a third of a pound.

“Of course, Mr. Conn is innocent until proven guilty in Court," said Lynn Deddens, Dearborn and Ohio County Prosecuting Attorney. "However, a large amount of crystal methamphetamine was taken off the streets. My office is committed to aggressive prosecution of these kinds of cases in an effort to get drugs out of our community. I want to thank the Indiana State Police Department for the good police work that went into making this arrest."

Conn is being held at the Dearborn County Law Enforcement Center pending his initial hearing in court on Friday.

He faces 10 to 30 years in prison if convicted of the dealing charge, plus another six to 20 years for the habitual offender enhancement.

According to the Indiana Department of Corrections, Conn has past convictions for drug possession, resisting law enforcement, reckless driving, and being a habitual substance offender in Franklin, Fayette, and Wayne counties dating back to 2014.