A woman and her male companion were arrested on drug charges after she was taken to the hospital for a possible overdose.
Andrea Michelle Busbee, 43, of Umatilla, and George Edward Berry, 55, of Lake Helen, pulled out of a driveway on County Road 468 without completely stopping around 9:35 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 8, according to an arrest report from the Fruitland Park Police Department. The driveway sat at the crest of a downhill slope, which posed a safety hazard for all traffic on the road.
Seeing this, an officer got behind Busbee’s dark passenger car which immediately turned westbound on Lomax Drive. He flipped on his emergency lights for a traffic stop, and the vehicle slowed down without stopping. It continued toward a private driveway at the end of the road even when the deputy used an emergency siren, the report said.
The vehicle sped up as it drove further onto the property and went behind the residence there. This prompted the officer to get out of his patrol vehicle to deploy a tire deflation device in case the vehicle tried to leave. When he walked around the corner, he saw it had stopped at the end of the driveway, the report said.
Busbee was still inside with Berry beside her in the passenger seat. While waiting for more officers, Busbee stated her “foot slipped” and admitted not stopping for law enforcement. Berry also claimed she had “PTSD,” the report said.
The occupants were taken out of the vehicle with the arrival of backup, during which they noticed Busbee had a clear plastic baggie on her left pant leg. She also had a multicolor makeup pouch and a small coin purse sitting on her seat, the report said.
However, she lost consciousness moments later and showed signs of a possible drug overdose. Officers used three doses of nasal Narcan on her while waiting for Lake County Fire, and Berry stated she used methamphetamine and fentanyl. He believed she might have bought fentanyl from the “friends” at the residence they had just left, the report said.
Busbee was ultimately taken to UF Health Leesburg Hospital, located at 600 E Dixie Ave., Leesburg, for treatment. Meanwhile, the officers opened the coin pouch found on her seat and saw it contained methamphetamine, fentanyl and a small cut straw. They discovered more narcotics throughout the vehicle, including more methamphetamine and fentanyl along with alprazolam pills and a glass smoking device with burnt residue, the report said.
Fearing an innocent civilian coming in contact with a deadly narcotic, the officers asked Berry if anything was thrown from the vehicle. He told them to check the area to the left of the vehicle, and they found a small plastic container of fentanyl. The officers believed Busbee took the contents of the container and threw it from the vehicle to destroy the evidence, the report said.
Busbee was later arrested on charges of flee/elude law enforcement with lights and siren active, possession of methamphetamine, possession of alprazolam, tampering with evidence and possession of drug paraphernalia. She was taken to Lake County Jail and released after posting $18,500 bond.
Berry was arrested and charged with possession of methamphetamine and fentanyl. The Texas native was brought to jail and released after posting $5,000 bond.