Fugitive had meth covered in Sriracha sauce and mustard, police say
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IDAHO FALLS — Police arrested an Idaho Falls man on parole after he allegedly agreed to sell drugs to an officer posing as someone else.
The Idaho Falls Police Department arrested Derek Bryan Gandall, 40, Sunday morning after police agreed to meet with the wanted man at a motel.
The sting operation was devised Friday after police officers spotted a stolen white Jeep in Idaho Falls, according to a department news release. The Jeep was connected to Gandall, who was wanted for a parole violation by the Idaho Department of Correction.
Believing Gandall was in town, an officer used a fake Facebook account to set up a time and place to buy drugs.
Gandall allegedly agreed to meet the officer and sell a quarter ounce of methamphetamine for $100.
After deciding to meet at a motel on Lindsey Boulevard, officers found Gandall in a black Chevrolet pickup truck like he said he would be. As officers spotted the pickup, Gandall jumped out and began running around the back of the hotel. Police took him into custody across the street, according to an affidavit of probable cause.
When taken into custody, officers found a small amount of powdery substance with Gandall. Another officer then spotted a handgun inside the pickup truck. Gandall, a convicted felon on parole, is not allowed to have guns, according to court documents.
A search of the truck uncovered 250 9mm rounds, handgun magazines, a box of glass methamphetamine pipes, empty baggies and a scale. Police also found more illegal items, including 200 to 300 “dirty thirty” pills, often made with fentanyl.
Inside the truck investigators also uncovered a backpack with two large bundles wrapped in cellophane, Sriracha sauce and mustard. Gandall told police he received the packages in that condition to try to mask the smell of methamphetamine from drug detection dogs, according to court documents.
In total Gandall had just under a pound of methamphetamine with him, according to police.
Gandall was booked into the Bonneville County Jail on the parole warrant for felony drug charges. Court records show prosecutors have also charged Gandall with felony trafficking of methamphetamine, felony possession of a controlled substance, felony unlawful possession of a firearm and misdemeanor charges of possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest.
Gandall also had a felony robbery warrant out of Montana and Idaho Falls Police say theft charges are still pending on the stolen jeep.
Although Gandall is accused of crimes, it does not necessarily mean he committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
A preliminary hearing for Gandall is scheduled for Nov. 19.