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A Springfield man, suspected of trafficking in methamphetamine, apparently hid among hay bales and outbuildings for two days before he was found sleeping between two hay bales early Wednesday.
Jasper County Sheriff's Capt. Derek Walrod said Cipriana J. Gomez, 29, Springfield, was captured at about 7:30 a.m. Wednesday in a field east of Carthage and is currently being held in the Jasper County Jail in Carthage.
"He's apparently been out there since Monday, that's all we can figure," Walrod said. "Someone spotted a man sleeping between two hay bales and called us this morning. We went out with the drug dog and he was found and arrested."
Gomez was one of two men who ran from officers who stopped their vehicle on Monday after an investigation into methamphetamine trafficking in the parking lot of the Carthage Wal-Mart.
The other man, Franci G. Ortega, 35, Springfield, was arrested Monday shortly after the traffic stop.
A written release from the Jasper County Sheriff's Office gave the following description of what happened on Monday:
Officers with the Jasper County Drug Task Force, including officers from the Sheriff's Office and Joplin, Webb City and Carthage police departments, received information on Sunday that a "substantial amount of methamphetamine was being delivered to Carthage to be sold in Jasper County."
Following up on the tip, officers learned that the methamphetamine was going to be delivered to the Carthage Wal-Mart parking lot and that they would be delivered in a newer model Ford truck.
At 9:30 p.m. Monday, investigators watching the parking lot saw a grey Ford truck drive into the parking lot. They watched the truck park in two different parking spots and the occupants never left the truck or entered any of the surrounding businesses.
"After approximately 45 minutes, the truck left the location at which time it was stopped by a marked patrol unit from Jasper County Sheriff's Office and two patrol units from Missouri State Highway Patrol," the Sheriff's Office said in a written release. "The truck was stopped at Airport Drive and County Road 120 for further investigation. After the truck was stopped, the two occupants of the truck attempted to flee from officers on foot. The passenger was quickly captured, but the driver avoided capture."
Officers said they searched the truck and found a container with one pound of a substance suspected to be methamphetamine. They said the meth was valued at $100,000.
Walrod said the highway patrol brought in its helicopter with infrared cameras to try to find the man, but he must have been hiding in a building or somehow shielding his body heat from the cameras.
A Springfield man, suspected of trafficking in methamphetamine, apparently hid among hay bales and outbuildings for two days before he was found sleeping between two hay bales early Wednesday.
Jasper County Sheriff's Capt. Derek Walrod said Cipriana J. Gomez, 29, Springfield, was captured at about 7:30 a.m. Wednesday in a field east of Carthage and is currently being held in the Jasper County Jail in Carthage.
"He's apparently been out there since Monday, that's all we can figure," Walrod said. "Someone spotted a man sleeping between two hay bales and called us this morning. We went out with the drug dog and he was found and arrested."
Gomez was one of two men who ran from officers who stopped their vehicle on Monday after an investigation into methamphetamine trafficking in the parking lot of the Carthage Wal-Mart.
The other man, Franci G. Ortega, 35, Springfield, was arrested Monday shortly after the traffic stop.
A written release from the Jasper County Sheriff's Office gave the following description of what happened on Monday:
Officers with the Jasper County Drug Task Force, including officers from the Sheriff's Office and Joplin, Webb City and Carthage police departments, received information on Sunday that a "substantial amount of methamphetamine was being delivered to Carthage to be sold in Jasper County."
Following up on the tip, officers learned that the methamphetamine was going to be delivered to the Carthage Wal-Mart parking lot and that they would be delivered in a newer model Ford truck.
At 9:30 p.m. Monday, investigators watching the parking lot saw a grey Ford truck drive into the parking lot. They watched the truck park in two different parking spots and the occupants never left the truck or entered any of the surrounding businesses.
"After approximately 45 minutes, the truck left the location at which time it was stopped by a marked patrol unit from Jasper County Sheriff's Office and two patrol units from Missouri State Highway Patrol," the Sheriff's Office said in a written release. "The truck was stopped at Airport Drive and County Road 120 for further investigation. After the truck was stopped, the two occupants of the truck attempted to flee from officers on foot. The passenger was quickly captured, but the driver avoided capture."
Officers said they searched the truck and found a container with one pound of a substance suspected to be methamphetamine. They said the meth was valued at $100,000.
Walrod said the highway patrol brought in its helicopter with infrared cameras to try to find the man, but he must have been hiding in a building or somehow shielding his body heat from the cameras.
