Thousands worth of heroin & cocaine found after traffic stop: Three people charged

RACINE COUNTY (WITI) -- Three people have been charged in connection with an incident in which $6,430 worth of heroin, and $6,160 worth of cocaine was discovered in a vehicle following a traffic stop on Monday night, June 9th.

Charged are:

Hibbler faces one count of possession with intent to deliver cocaine, and one count of possession with intent to deliver heroin.

Leatherberry faces one count of possession with intent to deliver cocaine (repeater), one count of possession with intent to deliver heroin (repeater), one count of possession of THC (repeater), and two counts of felony bail jumping (repeater).

Thomas faces one count of possession with intent to deliver cocaine and one count of possession with intent to deliver heroin.

A criminal complaint in the case says a Racine County Sheriff's deputy on Monday, June 9th around 8:00 p.m. was traveling northbound on I-94 near County Highway K in the Town of Yorkville, and observed a vehicle with a Minnesota license plate following the vehicle in front of it at an unsafe distance.

The complaint says the vehicle then crossed over the left lane three times -- without using its directional light. Once the vehicle was one-third of the way across the lane, it would swerve back into its lane of travel.

A traffic stop was conducted -- and as the deputy approached, the complaint says all three of the individuals inside the vehicle were looking around to see where the deputy would be approaching from -- and all three appeared nervous.

The complaint says Hibbler was determined to be the operator of the vehicle -- and admitted to not having a valid driver's license.

Thomas was the front seat passenger.

Leatherberry was in the backseat -- and told the deputy the car was a rental vehicle -- and was rented out in his name.

The complaint says Leatherberry was able to produce paperwork showing the car was rented in Minnesota for less than 48 hours.

The vehicle's occupants said they had come down to Chicago so Thomas could go to court for child support issues -- and they were now on their way home, according to the complaint.

The complaint says all three of the men acted as though they were in a hurry -- and all three avoided eye contact with the deputy.

The complaint says Thomas was unable to produce any paperwork that showed he was in court in Chicago.

A K-9 officer was called to the scene to assist with an open air sniff around the vehicle.

The complaint says the vehicle's occupants were ordered to exit the vehicle -- when Leatherberry admitted the three occupants had been smoking marijuana earlier in the day.

The open air sniff was conducted, and the K-9 officer alerted to narcotics inside the vehicle.

The complaint says a deputy searched the vehicle and located in the back seat was a plastic grocery bag that contained a bottle of Clorox bleach and a box of Gain laundry detergent.

The complaint says the deputy noticed the seal on the Gain was out of place -- and the Gain had been opened and then someone had attempted to re-seal it.

The box was opened, and a deputy found a softball-sized clear plastic ball sitting inside. The ball contained two smaller, individually-wrapped portions -- one white and one brown. The complaint says the white substance tested positive for the presence of cocaine. The brown substance tested positive for the presence of heroin.

The complaint says a search of Leatherberry's person uncovered a small plastic baggie that contained a green leafy substance that tested positive for the presence of marijuana.

The complaint says Leatherberry also had over $1,000 in cash on his person.

A total of five cell phones were recovered from the vehicle.

The complaint says Leatherberry has two pending felony cases in Douglas County.

In one case, he is charged with three felony counts of delivery of heroin, one count of possession of heroin with intent to deliver and one count of possession of THC.

In a second case, he is charged with obstructing an officer and felony bail jumping.

Leatherberry was out on bond at the time of Monday's traffic stop.

The complaint says the three individuals were interviewed -- and Thomas said the three are brothers, and went to Chicago for his child support case.

The complaint says at this time, Thomas was able to provide paperwork showing he did have court.

The complaint says Thomas said he received a small amount of marijuana earlier in the day, and said it was consumed.

The complaint says Thomas denied knowing about any other contraband in the vehicle.

The complaint says Leatherberry told officials he was suspicious about the detergent in the car.

Leatherberry told officials Thomas had spoken with a party on the phone who wanted them to return the detergent and bleach.

As to the $1,000 in cash, Leatherberry told officials he does not work and does not have a source of income, according to the complaint.

Hibbler refused to speak with officials.