Sheriff: drug raids fulfill election pledge promise

 By Billy Davis

Over the last three months four “fully developed” meth labs have been busted, and 11 people have been arrested, in Batesville and elsewhere in Panola County, Sheriff Dennis Darby said this week.

Darby said the sheriff’s department assisted Batesville police on Dickey Drive with a raid on a lab and also broke up three other labs in the Central Academy, Sardis Lake, and Longtown communities.

The sheriff said another suspect, Larry Moon, was arrested in a fifth raid Tuesday conducted by sheriff’s deputies and probation officers with the Mississippi Department of Corrections.

Moon was arrested at his residence on Dummyline Road, Darby said.

Authorities are charging Moon and a second suspect, Ricky Ware, with manufacturing and distributing crystal methamphetamine.

Moon is a longtime felon and was on probation for a drug conviction when he was arrested, and he may  face federal charges after this most recent arrest, Darby said.

The raid on Moon’s house produced 52 grams of meth, said Jason Chrestman, commander of the Panola County Drug Task Force.

Meth is selling on the streets for about $100 a gram, Chrestman said.

Approximately 28 grams equal one ounce, which means authorities recovered 1.8 ounces of meth worth more than $5,000. Two slices of sandwich bread weighs about two ounces.

The sheriff said a recent drug sting in the Green Hill area of Sardis resulted in two arrests at a residence there. Crack cocaine, powdered cocaine and marijuana were recovered from the home, he said.

“I made a promise to Panola County that we would crack down on the drugs,” Darby said. “If you’re tired of the drugs and you want something done, call us.”