MAN ARRESTED ON DRUG CHARGES
Suspect claimed to be drug counselor

Tyson Javon LaSalle is jailed on cocaine charges at the Harven A. Crouse Detention Center. Photo Contributed/TCS

By Jon Mayhew

LINCOLNTON -- An anonymous tip leads Lincolnton Police Department officers straight to a drug suspect, who claims he's a drug counselor.

Authorities were called just before 2 p.m. about drug activity going on at the Days Inn on Clark Drive in Lincolnton.

The tipster tells police that Tyson Javon LaSalle, 29, Deer Creek Drive, and another man were selling large amounts of crack cocaine from a motel room there. LaSalle was already out on bond on several charges, including armed robbery out of Catawba County; possession of cocaine; possession of a firearm by a felon; ficticious information to a law enforcement officer; and several traffic charges.

Patrol officers had noticed over the last several weeks that LaSalle had been renting rooms under different names for drug sales, according to a Lincolnton Police Department incident report.

Officers went to room 230 at the motel and found LaSalle sitting in front of the window.

LaSalle opened the door after officers knocked and told them there weren't any drugs in the room. When officers asked if LaSalle would consent to a search, he told them they could search and claimed it wasn't his room.

During questioning, the suspect handed officers a blunt containing marijauna and also a clear plastic baggie.

LaSalle claimed the cocaine wasn't his and that the drugs in the baggie were not real. Instead, he told them the drugs were wax. According to a field test conducted by investigators, the baggie tested positive for cocaine.

Besides 40 grams of cocaine, officers seized a razor blade in the room and an undisclosed amount of cash off the suspect.

LaSalle was taken into custody. During the arrest, two friends of LaSalle showed up in the hotel room and accompanied the man to the Magistrate's Office.

After being taken into custody, LaSalle told officers he could get $2,000 for the cocaine "on the street" according to the police report. The value listed of the drugs were around $200.

While at the Magistrate's Office, LaSalle was anything but silent according to the report, directly going against his Miranda rights to remain silent.

"When I get out of this, I'm going to sell dope because (law enforcement) is going to charge me with it," he was overheard saying to his friends.

As he was being taken to jail, LaSalle wasn't going quietly; he was verbally abusive to the officers taking him to the Harven A. Crouse Detention Center.

LaSalle was charged with trafficking in cocaine and possession with intent to sell and deliver cocaine. Bond for LaSalle was set at $125,000 secured. He has a first appearance hearing Wednesday in Lincolnton District Court.