Indiana Man, 87, nabbed with 228 pounds of cocaine

October 24, 2011 - Detroit News

An 87-year-old Indiana man was freed on $10,000 bond Monday after Michigan State Police said they found more than 228 pounds of cocaine stashed in the back of his pickup truck. The cocaine, approximately 104 kilograms, has a wholesale value of more than $2.9 million.

"That is certainly a significant cocaine seizure," said Rich Isaacson, spokesman for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Leo Earl Sharp of Michigan City, Ind., was arrested Friday in Washtenaw County and charged Sunday with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison.

Sharp made one of the more colorful appearances in recent memory during a detention hearing Monday in federal court in Detroit.

The mutton-chopped man shuffled to the podium during the hearing, appeared to ask for a more comfortable chair and nervously licked his lips.

Most routine court hearings pass without the defendant saying much beyond simple yes or no answers.

Sharp, however, ignored a judge's advice to keep quiet.

At one point, Sharp said he couldn't hear U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Randon. Sharp said he lost his hearing after a cannon fired during "the war," though he didn't say which one.

Randon asked Sharp, who has worked as a truck driver for 40 years and is married with three children, if he could read.

"I can probably read as well or better than anybody," said Sharp, dressed in a faded green jailhouse uniform.

The judge warned him about saying anything incriminating.

It was a drug bust that started as a routine traffic stop.

Sharp was stopped by a trooper near mile marker 160 at 5:25 p.m. Friday near Ann Arbor.

Sharp refused to let the trooper search his truck, but a drug-sniffing dog arrived and found the bricks stored in the bed of his pickup, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court.

The drugs were turned over to the DEA.

"This is one of the more spirited cases I've had," defense lawyer Ray Richards told reporters after what turned out to be a comical hearing.

Sharp told the judge he's writing a book about the arrest.

Then, he hinted at a sinister plot.

"I was forced to do what I did by gunpoint," Sharp said.

Someone in the gallery gasped.

"Mr. Sharp, we are trying to get you home to Indiana," the judge said. "Would you like to?"

Sharp tried to say something.

"Is that a yes or no?" the judge asked.

"Yes," Sharp replied.

"Help me help you," the judge said.

Sharp said his passport was stolen, prompting snickers from the gallery.

"I was forced to do what I did by gunpoint," Sharp told the judge.

Someone snickered again. It was contagious, spreading through the gallery.

Randon, the judge, tried to stifle a laugh by covering his mouth. Then, he shook his head and smiled.

Sharp said he needed his stroke medication.

"I could have a stroke," Sharp said.

"I don't want you to have a stroke," the judge said.

The judge told Sharp he would have to take a drug test.

"I've never used a drug in my life," Sharp said. "Ever."

Then, he apologized.

"I'm sorry to be so troublesome," Sharp said. "I don't mean to be that way."

Randon said he was being released on bond but faces additional penalties if he doesn't return for a Nov. 10 hearing.

"I'll be here," Sharp said. "You can depend on me. I will show up. I know you have to tell me that, but I will be here."

The judge asked Sharp if he had any additional questions before ending the hearing. The judge regretted it, though.

"I wish I hadn't asked that," Randon said.

http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showfla ... r/15272349