TIFT COUNTY, Ga. — A curious dog helped land a south Georgia man in prison for the next several years.
Timothy Bernard Reese, 44, of Tift County, was sentenced to 75 months this week after he pleaded guilty to drug charges in April.
According to facts admitted by Reese in court, a resident of Ochlocknee (Thomas County), Georgia, called authorities on December 13, 2019, about a suspicious brown satchel found by his dog. The dog’s owner reported that his dog had come home that day carrying the bag. When the owner opened the bag, he found what appeared to be large quantities of drugs and immediately called the Thomas County Sheriff’s Office.
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The contents tested positive for 154.78 grams of methamphetamine. Lottery tickets were also found inside of the bag.
Thomas County-Thomasville Narcotics/Vice agents were able to pinpoint the exact location and time that the lottery tickets had been purchased. Pulling surveillance video from the Susie Q’s Foods in Meigs, officers observed Reese purchasing the lottery tickets; on December 16, 2019, the police obtained an arrest warrant for Reese.
The next day, a woman filed a report with the Cairo Police Department alleging that on December 13, 2019, Reese came into her room at the Grady Lodge and punched her in the face, fracturing her eye socket, and demanded to know where his meth was located. Reese was taken into custody on December 19, 2019, and he later admitted that the brown bag belonged to him, and he planned to distribute the methamphetamine.
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“It’s not every day that a family pet helps nab a drug trafficker. I want to commend the concerned Thomas County citizen and his devoted dog for helping to bring this methamphetamine dealer to justice,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary. “The Thomas County-Thomasville Narcotics/Vice unit continues to do an outstanding job protecting the citizens of their community and curbing the flow of deadly narcotics into south Georgia.”
Reese has prior felony convictions for burglary and possession of firearm by a convicted felon, both in the Superior Court of Tift County.
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“We are all in this fight against drugs together. We welcome help from anybody including family pets,” said Lieutenant Commander Louis Schofill, Thomas County-Thomasville Narcotics/Vice Division.