07/08/2026
TWO STOPS. TWO DRUG SEIZURES. SIX POUNDS OF M**H.
🚨 PORTAGE AGGRESSIVE CRIME ENFORCEMENT (P.A.C.E.) 🚨
Despite repeated evidence to the contrary, some individuals still choose Portage County as their preferred corridor for drug trafficking.
That decision continues to age poorly.
In two separate traffic stops, members of the P.A.C.E. Unit (our dedicated interdiction team) intercepted approximately six pounds of Methamphetamine before it could reach its destination.
Two stops. Two seizures. And once again, no success for those who thought they’d slip through unnoticed.
If you’re looking for a smooth route for drug trafficking, we strongly suggest you keep looking… because this isn’t it.
🛑STOP ONE🛑
On 06-16-2026 members of the P.A.C.E. Unit conducted a traffic stop on Interstate 80 for what started as simple Misdemeanor traffic violations… and ended with a one-pound problem.
The driver, identified as Job Israel of Detroit, Michigan, managed to draw enough attention during the stop to earn himself a closer look.
Deputies observed multiple criminal indicators and called in K9 Hector, because when something doesn’t smell right, we bring in the expert.
Hector didn’t need long.
After a positive alert, a search of the vehicle uncovered approximately one pound of Methamphetamine, vacuum-sealed and tucked neatly inside the back pouch of the front passenger seat. Not exactly the kind of carry-on we recommend.
Israel was taken into custody and transported to the Portage County Justice Center. He has been charged with Aggravated Trafficking in Drugs, a Felony of the first degree, along with Major Drug Offender (MDO) specifications.
If convicted, he’s looking at a mandatory 11-year stay, courtesy of choices made on I-80.
As always, all individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law… but Hector remains undefeated.
🛑STOP TWO🛑
On 6-24-2026 members of the P.A.C.E. Unit conducted a traffic stop on Interstate 80 in Freedom Township for Misdemeanor traffic violations.
The driver, Derek Mountz of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, and passenger, Tracy Dewitt of Kline Township, Pennsylvania, quickly turned a traffic stop into something much more serious.
After deputies observed criminal indicators, consent was granted to search the vehicle (Hector was able to rest this time).
Deputies located a bag hidden under the passenger seat containing five individually wrapped, vacuum-sealed packages of Methamphetamine, approximately five pounds total. Apparently, hiding five pounds of Methamphetamine under a seat seemed like a solid plan. It was not.
Dewitt was charged by the Portage County Sheriff’s Office with Aggravated Trafficking in Drugs, a Felony of the first degree. Mountz was federally charged with Possession with the Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance.
Another reminder from Sheriff Bruce D. Zuchowski: Our interstates are not your personal delivery routes for poor life choices. If you’re traveling through Portage County with illegal drugs, criminal intentions, or a vehicle full of excuses, you may want to reconsider your route. Our Deputies have a habit of finding exactly what people hope they won’t, and we’re not known for letting bad decisions reach their final destination.
