A Mabelvale man and a homeless woman were charged with felonies Monday morning after they were found passed out in a vehicle at Walmart and allegedly had fentanyl and drug paraphernalia in their possession.
Steven James Spann, 29, who lists a Mabelvale address, and Samantha Louise Nolen, 30, who lists no permanent address, were both taken into custody around 9:15 a.m. at Walmart, 4019 Central Ave., and each charged with felony counts of possession of a controlled substance, fentanyl, punishable by up to 10 years in prison, and possession of drug paraphernalia, punishable by up to six years, and a misdemeanor count of possession of a controlled substance.
Spann and Nolen, who each had warrants out of Grant County, were being held on zero bonds and are set to appear today in Garland County District Court. Nolen, who was convicted of a felony count of possession of a controlled substance in Grant County on Sept. 26, 2017, and sentenced to three years in prison, also had a parole hold on him.
According to a probable cause affidavit, shortly after 9 a.m., Hot Springs police Officer Corey Montgomery responded to Walmart for a welfare check after a caller reported seeing two people "slumped over in a vehicle" in the parking lot who "had not moved in quite some time."
He saw a man, later identified as Spann, slumped over in the driver's seat and a woman, later identified as Nolen, slumped over in the passenger seat.
Officers noted they could see both in possession of drug paraphernalia, including a lighter, straws and aluminum foil commonly used to ingest or smoke narcotics. They opened the passenger door and both Spann and Nolen "lifted their heads," but were sluggish in their movements and speech.
After discovering the warrants for each of them, they were both taken into custody without incident. Nolen reportedly told officers she had a glass smoking pipe in her bra which was removed and taken into evidence.
In searching the vehicle, officers allegedly found a small glass vial containing a white powder that tested positive for fentanyl, about 1 gram. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, fentanyl is "a powerful synthetic opioid analgesic that is similar to morphine but is 50 to 100 times more potent."
Officers also found numerous folded aluminum sheets with charred residue "spread throughout the vehicle."
Nolen reportedly admitted she and Spann purchased the narcotics Sunday night and had been using them prior to the arrival of the officers.
