Woman, facing felony drug charges, tells police she 'only does blow'

Whitney Elyse Hopkins - Submitted photo
Whitney Elyse Hopkins - Submitted photo

A local woman arrested early Thursday on felony drug charges after a routine traffic stop reportedly told Hot Springs police she has never smoked cigarettes or drank alcohol and "only does blow," or cocaine.

Whitney Elyse Hopkins, 31, who lists an Amber Street address, was taken into custody around 2 a.m. and charged with possession of a controlled substance, cocaine, and possession of drug paraphernalia, each punishable by up to six years in prison.

Hopkins, who also had a warrant for failure to appear, remained in custody Thursday in lieu of $6,000 bond and is set to appear today in Garland County District Court.

According to the probable cause affidavit, Officer 1st Class Richard Nunez made a traffic stop on a gray Nissan Sentra after noticing the headlight was broken and made contact with the female driver.

He noted a strong odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle and advised the driver and the front-seat passenger, identified as Hopkins, about the smell. At that point, Hopkins reportedly opened the glove compartment and Nunez told her not to reach for anything and she complied and both she and the driver were asked to get out.

Nunez searched the car and reportedly found a black case under the passenger seat, "within reach" of Hopkins, which contained empty baggies, a spoon, razor blade, straw, small tray, and a bag of white powder which later tested positive for cocaine, 1.2 grams.

The affidavit states Hopkins initially told Nunez the drugs were not hers, but later after being read her rights again, she reportedly stated she had never drunk alcohol, never smoked cigarettes and "only does blow."

Local on 02/21/2020

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