By BEN LUNDIN

Staff Reporter

HAHNVILLE – The St. Charles Sheriff’s Office’s captured four suspected drug dealers in three unrelated May drug busts and seized more than $10,000 and moderate quantities of marijuana, ecstasy, methadone and pills.

With the help of anonymous citizen tips the Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Division and Special Response Team arrested Steven Fischer, 18, of 204 Dunleith Drive in Destrehan, Louis Parent, 61, of 148 Kennedy St. in St. Rose, Marcus Mott, 27, of 1120 Kinler St. in Luling and Marcel Myles, 19, of 1120 Kinler St. in Luling.

All four were booked at the Nelson Coleman Correctional Center with possession with intent to distribute marijuana, among other charges.

The first raid came on May 17 following a traffic stop and Parent’s subsequent arrest and yielded $9,541.29, 105.4 grams of marijuana, 28 doses of methadone, 13 doses of the narcotic pain reliever Loratab, 118 doses of the muscle relaxant Carisoprodol, a digital safe and several scales at 148 Kennedy St.

Six days later a second traffic stop led to Joseph’s arrest and the subsequent seizure at two different residences on Dunleith Drive of $1,835, 593 grams of marijuana, sandwich bags and two scales.

The next day, May 23, the Special Investigations Division and Special Response Team executed a search warrant on 1120 Kinler St. and arrested Mott and Myles before they captured $524, 27 pills of ecstasy, a .380 caliber handgun, a digital scale and a pound of marijuana separated into small re-sealable bags.

&#8220These are three good arrests of obvious dealers,” Sheriff Greg Champagne said. &#8220It’s indicative of the fact that obviously drug trafficking is up since Katrina, and we keep fighting. But the important thing is that all three of these cases began with anonymous information by citizens of what they were seeing.”

The first bust began with seeming innocence when officers conducted a traffic stop of Parent’s vehicle in an area of Ninth Street known for heavy drug trafficking, which led to a subsequent search of a home in New Sarpy that uncovered 48.5 grams of marijuana. Officers then executed a second search warrant at Parent’s home at 148 Kennedy St. in St. Rose, where they seized a quarter-pound of marijuana and the other drugs, money and paraphernalia previously listed.

Sheriff Greg Champange declined to detail what officers uncovered during the traffic stop that ultimately led to the search of the first home, or how the investigation brought them to Parent’s house.

Mirroring the first bust, the second arrest came after a traffic stop of Joseph’s vehicle followed by a search of his home at 204 Dunleith Dr. in Destrehan where agents captured 113.5 grams of marijuana, before Joseph admitted to having more drugs at his parent’s house in the Dunleith Drive area.

Agents executed a second search warrant on that home when they found 479.5 grams of marijuana, $1,835, sandwich bags and two scales. The marijuana seized from the two homes totaled 1.3 pounds.

The third raid, which landed Mott and Myles in prison, came following an investigation of a home at 1120 Kinler St. sparked by anonymous citizen complaints.

Authorities booked Parent with possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession with intent to distribute methadone, possession with intent to distribute Loratab, possession with intent to distribute legend drug Carisoprodol, possession of drug paraphernalia, turn signal required and three counts of illegal use of a controlled substance in the presence of juveniles.

Fischer was arrested on charges of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Officers charged Mott and Myles with possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession with intent to distribute ecstasy, possession of a firearm in the presence of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Mott was booked with additional charges of resisting an officer by violence and fugitive of Jefferson Parish.