An Orlando woman who was arrested on drug charges blamed the officer when she gave a false name to jail staff.
An officer was conducting a traffic stop at U.S. Hwy. 27/441 and Berckman Street when an SUV passed by around 10:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 2, according to an arrest report from the Fruitland Park Police Department. He saw it did not have working tag lights, so he pulled the vehicle over at Walmart, 2501 Citrus Blvd., Leesburg, to speak with the occupants, including 34-year-old Shanna Ariel Greek.
As the officer asked the male driver for his license, Greek declined to give her name and date of birth. The officer noticed multiple small white chunks on her seat at the time, believing them to be crack cocaine. He then walked back to his patrol vehicle with the driver’s license and checked the printed address in Jacksonville, the report said.
The address listed a woman named “Michelle” as a resident, who had the same facial features and hair as Greek. A check of Michelle’s license revealed she had an active Orange County warrant for failure to appear for petit theft. Due to an occupant allegedly having a warrant, the officer asked the driver to step out of the vehicle, the report said.
He also asked the driver if Greek’s name was Michelle, to which he hesitated before answering yes. He then told Greek to hop out, and when she did, he saw more small white chunks and a syringe with a loaded needle in her seat. She was subsequently handcuffed and addressed as “Michelle,” to which she did not say anything, the report said.
Upon walking back to Greek’s door, he saw a burnt glass pipe. He proceeded to search the vehicle and picked up the pipe from a small black purse, which also contained a small scale. Greek later stated she had another pipe in her pants and used the scale to make sure she was not being ripped off. The white chunks tested positive for cocaine and weighed 3.1 grams, the report said.
Additionally, Greek continued to go by Michelle, even giving staff at Lake County Jail that name and date of birth. The staff were still able to properly identify her and determined she had a Volusia County warrant for failure to appear for drug paraphernalia, the report said.
When asked about this, she stated the officer did not give her an opportunity to explain her real name. In reality, she had over 40 minutes to tell the officer her real name. She advised that she had a warrant anyway and was sorry, the report said.
Greek was charged with possession of crack cocaine, possession of drug paraphernalia and false name to law enforcement officer. Bond was set at $11,000.