Fairbanks police arrested a local man Thursday evening after discovering methamphetamine sewn into three stuffed toys. The meth-filled stuffed toys discovery followed a federal search warrant executed on December 23rd.
Authorities intercepted the package containing approximately five pounds of meth and traced its shipment from San Bernardino, California. It was addressed to a woman residing at a drug rehabilitation center in Fairbanks.
To investigate the meth-filled stuff toys case, investigators planted a tracking device and UV reactive substance called clue spray inside the package before delivering. By noon Thursday, officials had delivered the package to the recipient’s apartment.
When the suspect arrived at her apartment at 4:30 p.m., she put the box in an SUV and drove to a gas station. Later on investigators watched her transfer the package to a dark-colored Mercedes sedan.
One of the investigators made the connection that Darian Spann, a 34-year-old Fairbanks resident, was the Mercedes driver. After Spann took the package to his apartment, investigators confronted him, finding his hands coated in the UV-reactive substance.
Officials found a digital scale, baggies, and one pound of crystal methamphetamine in a small safe discovered during Spann’s apartment search. Investigators also found a loaded extended magazine in a semiautomatic weapon.
Spann said that he knew a package containing five pounds of meth was coming. He described the prices for his business stating that he buys the meth for $4,000 per pound and sells it for $5,000 per pound.
Furthermore, Spann, charged with drug and weapons misconduct, was arraigned at the Fairbanks courthouse on Friday. His bail was set at $20,000, and a preliminary hearing was scheduled for January 6th, 2025.
This news article was originally published by Alaska’s News Source.
