BY MIKE NOLTING
Police made one arrest on High Street this week after witnessing a drug deal in progress.
“We are probably going to be stepping up our efforts in the next several weeks in respect to placing officers into positions where they can make more of those types of arrests,” Morgantown Police Chief Eric Powell said. “We’re going to concentrate more heavily on those street-level type deals in downtown and anywhere else they might be occurring.”
Officers patrolling High Street Wednesday allege they witnessed Dusty Doman, 35, of Morgantown, hand another person a folded piece of paper in the doorway of a business and also saw cash in Doman’s hand.
When police asked the pair what they were doing, the unidentified person opened the white paper, and a white substance was blown to the ground.
While being questioned, Doran told police the unidentified person asked him for whatever he had because he was getting “dope sick,” and that’s when he handed the folded paper.
Police said the powder is believed to be heroin.
Powell asks residents to report suspected drug activity when they see it if possible.
“When they see something report it,” Powell said. “If it is suspicious or they suspect it is suspicious let us know about it as it’s happening as soon as possible so we can get people in those positions to make those types of arrests.”
Doman has been charged with possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and is being held in the North Central Regional Jail on a $10,000 bond.
In the future, Powell expects surveillance cameras that are being installed in the downtown area to be a big help to law enforcement.
“I think they’ll be a very useful tool evidentiary wise as well as initial observations,” Powell said. “We’re working on monitoring the cameras.”
