Meth hidden in knife handle inside abandoned car leads to man’s arrest

A Tecumseh man is facing multiple felony charges after officers reportedly found methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia hidden inside a knife discovered in his vehicle along Highway 5 near Wasola last month. 

According to the probable cause statement prepared by Missouri State Highway Patrol Cpl. Daniel Johnson, at 2 p.m. Sept. 8, the officer was patrolling Highway 5, just north of Wasola, when a black 2022 Dodge Charger with an Arkansas license plate was partially blocking the southbound lane. The officer said he didn’t see anyone around the vehicle, and the vehicle was locked. 

Johnson called a wrecker service to remove the vehicle for safe keeping, the report says. As the tow company removed the vehicle and drove it toward the tow lot, the officer followed and inventoried the vehicle in a safe location upon its arrival. 

Johnson said he found a survival knife on the front seat of the vehicle that had a hollow handle and a threaded cap. After removing the cap, the officer found a syringe and a baggie of what he suspected was methamphetamine.

Johnson spoke with Kaleb Yost later that day, as the vehicle was registered to him and arranged to meet him at the tow lot. 

Just before 2 p.m. the next day, the officer met Yost at the lot and brought up the knife, which Yost reportedly said belonged to him. He then told him of the contents he had found in the handle and placed him under arrest. 

Johnson then went back to the vehicle that Yost had arrived in and spoke with the driver, explaining the situation and asking permission to search the area where the suspect was sitting to ensure Yost hadn’t left anything illegal in that vehicle. The driver reportedly granted permission and found a glass meth pipe containing a white residue right next to Yost’s wallet on the seat where he had been sitting before getting out to talk to the officer. Johnson seized the pipe and asked Yost about it. He reportedly claimed ownership, and the other occupants of the vehicle also said it belonged to him. 

He is charged with three felonies: unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of methamphetamine and unlawful use of a weapon (possessing a felony-level controlled substance and a weapon at the same time). He also has a misdemeanor charge filed against him for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia (with a prior drug offense) for the pipe.  

He was released from jail Sept. 11, and a letter in his file indicates he was accepted into the Changes Residential Recovery center in Mountain Home, Arkansas, which teaches “life skills and to deal with life without drugs or alcohol.” The program is no less than one year in length. 

He is scheduled to reappear in the case at 9 a.m. Oct. 28, for a criminal setting before Judge Gross.