jack

Cop: Caller Thought They Were Dealers

LAKE CHARLES, La., Apr. 1, 2008
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(AP) Police officers suspected that a car they had pulled over was stolen, so they called the registered owner and left a message.

But when the owner called back, officers say, she apparently thought the message was from a drug dealer, and she was busted for allegedly trying to buy crack cocaine.

"Officers put in a lot of energy to close a case, so we never mind getting one on sheer luck and stupidity," Lake Charles police Sgt. Mark Kraus said of last week's arrest.

He said officers Hope Kingery and George Miller stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation and the driver could not produce identification or a valid driver's license. Miller called the car's registered owner and left a message, but in the meantime they determined that the vehicle wasn't stolen and allowed the driver to leave, Kraus said.

About an hour later, Miller got a call on his cell phone from the apparent owner of the car "who stated that she would like to buy $150 in crack," Kraus said.

Miller agreed to a meeting, which led to the arrest of Jill Foreman, 33, and fiance Larry Rieck, 49, both of Sulphur.

Foreman was freed on bail after being booked with conspiracy to distribute a controlled dangerous substance, the sheriff's office said. No phone number was listed for her in Sulphur and the sheriff's office had no lawyer listed Tuesday for either Rieck or Foreman.

Rieck remained in custody Tuesday on the same charge, the sheriff's office said.

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