KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A 40-year-old Knoxville woman is facing several felony drug and weapon charges stemming from a stolen vehicle traffic stop along Merchant Drive Monday night, according to court records. The suspect is also a convicted felon on previous drug and robbery charges.
An arrest report states that on Dec. 27 around 10:20 p.m., officers responded to the 400 block of Merchant Drive in reference to a stolen license plate, where they located the suspect, Jamie Shuree Haptonstall, 40, sitting inside a black 2016 Kia Forte that had been reported stolen. Officers conducted an inventory search of the vehicle, finding several suspected drugs of different colors in two separate lockboxes, digital scales, a handgun and paraphernalia.
During their search of the vehicle, officers initially found baggies containing a green leafy substance believed to be marijuana along with a glass pipe in the driver’s door and center console. Then, they opened a backpack that was sitting in the front passenger seat, finding the first lockbox that was opened on a probable cause search that contained the following:
- 326.2 grams of a crystal-like substance believed to be methamphetamine
- 10 grams of a brown substance believed to be heroin
- 14 grams of a green leafy substance believed to be marijuana
- A large number of baggies
- 2 digital scales
- A .25 caliber Titan handgun
Officers then located and opened a separate lockbox found in the vehicle that contained the following:
- 3.4 grams of a purple powder believed to be heroin
- .6 grams of a brown powder believed to be heroin
- 14.7 grams of a white powder that was marked “P.P.” believed to be heroin
- 5.8 grams of a gray powder believed to be heroin
- .9 grams of a white powder that was marked “Boy” believed to be heroin
- 11 Suboxone strips
- 15.8 grams of a crystal-like substance believed to be methamphetamine
Once officers ran a National Crime Information Center (NCIC) background check on the suspect Haptonstall, they found she had previous felony convictions from 2010 for robbery and vandalism, as well as for a 2019 conviction for the manufacture, sale and delivery of Schedule II drugs.
The arrest report concludes that due to the quantity, packaging, and paraphernalia officers believed that Haptonstall is engaged in the sale and distribution of several narcotics and the firearm was used to protect her interests in that activity.
Haptonstall was arrested and booked into the Knox County Detention Center and had a scheduled bond hearing in court Wednesday morning.
As of Dec. 29, there have been 32 reported suspected overdose deaths in Knox County for the month of December, according to the Knox County District Attorney General’s Office.
