Duffle found in Whatcom road, but police reportedly discover it didn’t contain gym clothes
An unsecured load can bring a $228 fine in Washington state, but a 25-year-old man may face a much larger penalty after 236 fake Oxycodone pills made with fentanyl and several baggies with suspected cocaine were reportedly found in a duffle bag that fell off his vehicle in Lynden.
The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office booked Anthony Robert Martinez into Whatcom County Jail Thursday, March 3, on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. Jail records show he was released Friday on $50,000 bail.
At approximately 9:23 p.m. July 14, an officer with the Lynden Police Department located a small, red Nike duffle bag laying the roadway in the 1800 block of Front Street, according to Whatcom County Superior Court documents.
A witness told the officer that they saw a dark-colored Cadillac Escalade exit a business in the area and head westbound on Front Street, documents state. The witness also reported seeing the bag fall off the vehicle as it pulled out of the parking lot.
While on scene investigating, the officer noted a dark gray Cadillac Escalade matching the witness’ description drive by slowly heading eastbound on Front Street, according to documents. A check revealed the Escalade was registered to Martinez.
The officer examined the contents of the duffle and found 236 blue pills, a white powdery substance, a digital scale and a suspected drug ledger, court documents state. The ledger reportedly included transaction notes along with the name “Anthony.”
The pills were stamped with “M” and “30” so that they would look like Oxycodone pills, according to the documents, and were suspected to contain fentanyl, the documents state, while the white powdery substance separated in two baggies field tested positive for the presumptive presence of cocaine and weighed a combined 7.27 grams.
The suspected drug ledger was sent to the Washington State Patrol Crime Lab for fingerprint analysis, documents state, and the lab determined six left thumbprints and two left palm prints within the ledger matched to Martinez, though others were from an unidentified source.
Court records show Martinez was already scheduled to stand trial on April 25 on charges of third-degree rape and violation of a court protection order from a 2019 incident and another trial on Monday, March 14, on two charges of second-degree assault and one of harassment from a second incident in 2019.
Martinez also has previous convictions for attempting to elude police, unlawful possession of a firearm, assault, possession of a stolen firearm, criminal impersonation and reckless burning in Whatcom and Skagit counties, court records show.
