Woman, 66, charged with possession of methamphetamine after traffic stop | News

A 66-year-old woman who was in the back seat of a car was arrested on drug charges after the vehicle was stopped by police Monday, according to a magistrate’s complaint filed in Superior Court.

Doris Asuncion Mendiola Benavente was charged Tuesday with possession of a Schedule II controlled substance.

Police stopped the car, described in the complaint as a “suspicious vehicle in a reported burglary,” at 3:25 p.m. along Route 28 near Catalina Street in Dededo.

The officer who questioned Benavente said she was “constantly moving” while sitting in the backseat and looking at the ground near her feet. She was moving her jaw from side to side and grinding her teeth, according to the complaint.

The police officer asked him to get out of the vehicle.

“He observed that she was nervous, her eyes were twitching, and she was searching for imaginary objects in the air,” the complaint states. “He also noted that she spoke in gibberish. She had difficulty exiting the vehicle and appeared unable to control her movements.

The officer conducted a search and found three bags containing methamphetamine and a straw with one end sealed. He also found a clear glass pipe with methamphetamine residue in Benavente’s waistband and seven $100 bills.

At the station, she told police the drugs and pipe belonged to her and that a friend – who she refused to name – had given her the items earlier in the day.

She said the money came from her COLA and she planned to use it to buy a generator.

Benavente “continued to display uncontrolled movements. The officer observed her shaking, sliding out of the chair and rambling,” the complaint states.