ROCKINGHAM — Two men with outstanding warrants out of Scotland County were arrested following a traffic stop in Richmond County after deputies reportedly found LSD and meth.
According to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, a patrol deputy noticed a vehicle without a registration plate traveling on U.S. 74 on Thursday, Dec. 1.
The deputy attempted a traffic stop, and investigators say the vehicle slowed down, “but did not pull over for an extended period of time.”
The driver, 33-year-old Cornell Tyqown Grady, of Bennettsville, South Carolina, reportedly told the deputy that he was unaware there was no registration plate on the vehicle. Grady also allegedly admitted to not having a valid driver’s license.
The deputy tried to run the vehicle identification number, but could not find any information, according to the press release.
Grady reportedly gave the deputy permission to look for the registration card in the glove compartment and had an unnamed female passenger step out of the vehicle. After she got out, the deputy reportedly found a red baggie with one dose of LSD.
A male passenger in the back seat, 40-year-old Bobby Clair Bennett, also of Bennettsville, was then asked to exit the vehicle and asked for his ID, according to the press release.
Bennett reportedly told the deputy he didn’t have one and gave a fake name — but then said he knew he had an outstanding warrant and gave his real name.
After searching the passengers and the vehicle, deputies reportedly recovered 2.11 grams of methamphetamine.
Grady was arrested and charged with possession of a Schedule I controlled substance; possession of a Schedule II controlled substance. He was also cited for several driving violations and served with an order for arrest out of Scotland County for failure to appear in court for a misdemeanor charge of assault on a female.
Grady was booked in the Richmond County Jail under a $12,500 secured bond.
Bennett was served with outstanding warrants from Scotland County charging him with larceny and trespassing and booked under a $500 secured bond.
The female passenger was released without charges.
Grady and Bennett did not appear in online jail records at 4 p.m. the day of the arrest. Their court dates are currently unknown.
South Carolina court records show Grady has pending charges in Marlboro County: two counts of possession of a narcotic in Schedule I, LSD and Schedule II; and one count each of possession of cocaine and distribution of methamphetamine.
Online records with the North Carolina Court System show Bennett has three pending misdemeanor charges in Moore County: larceny, possession of stolen goods or property, and injury to personal property.
Records with the N.C. Department of Public Safety Division of Adult Correction list Grady as a probation absconder and show he was convicted in February on a misdemeanor conspiracy charge in Scotland County.
Grady’s previous convictions in Marlboro County include second-degree burglary and grand larceny.
Bennett was convicted in 2021 of shoplifting in Dillon County, South Carolina.
All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
