A Leesburg man who’s no stranger to the Lake County Jail was arrested on drug charges in Eustis on Wednesday night after an officer smelled burnt marijuana while measuring the tint on his vehicle’s windows.
Shuvaun Jamall Faniel, 29, of 611 Mills St., was charged with possession of a controlled substance (THC wax) without a prescription, possession of drug equipment, driving with a suspended license (habitual offender), and a couple probation violations. Jail records show this was Faniel’s eighth arrest since 2019 and the first since April 2020, when he was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to sell and giving a false ID to law enforcement.
According to the arrest affidavit, a Eustis police officer was monitoring traffic on North Bay Street shortly before midnight and observed a white Chrysler with tinted windows that appeared darker than legally allowed. The officer conducted a traffic stop on Bay just north of Clifford Avenue.
The officer asked the driver, identified as Faniel, to bring the front and rear windows halfway down to allow for testing of the tint percentage. The percentage was 17 percent, which is above the legal limit. The officer told Faniel the tint was illegal and Faniel said the car belonged to his cousin. While speaking with the occupants, the officer could smell the odor of burnt marijuana emitting from the vehicle. The officer also observed a small smoked marijuana blunt stuffed in the ashtray, which was in the cup holder, the report said.
A check of Faniel’s driving record showed his license has been suspended more than a dozen times and he’s listed as a habitual traffic violator. Faniel said he has a medical marijuana card but didn’t have it with him, according to the report.
Based on the smell of burnt marijuana and the marijuana blunt in plain view, the officer conducted a probable cause search of the vehicle. A small black bag in the back seat contained a tan waxy substance that tested positive for high THC. The officer was able to identify the bag as Faniel’s because he was seen searching through it for his license and registration, the report said.
Faniel was booked at the Eustis Police Department and taken to the jail, where he’s being held on $5,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in Lake County Court on May 23.
