DETROIT – A man wanted for a drug charge out of West Virginia was caught at a Greyhound bus station in Detroit while in possession of bags containing a gun, ammunition, methamphetamine, and fentanyl, police said.
Investigators said they saw Charles Leon McGee, 53, at the bus station around 3 p.m. Sept. 12. McGee had an active U.S. Marshals felony warrant for dangerous drugs out of West Virginia, according to authorities.
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McGee was dropped off at the bus station by someone driving a gray Chrysler 200 sedan with a Michigan license plate registered to an Eastpointe resident, according to a criminal complaint. The address associated with the Chrysler 200′s registration was listed as McGee’s home, officials said.
Police said McGee walked into the bus station with a yellow backpack and a green duffel bag. He appeared to have a small bag bulging out of the left side of his dark-colored jacket, according to court records.
McGee went to the counter and bought a bus ticket to Pittsburgh using the name “Shawn Taylor,” the complaint says. Police searched the Michigan Secretary of State database for a picture of McGee, and it matched the appearance of the person claiming to be “Shawn Taylor,” they said.
After buying the ticket, McGee put his bags in the lobby and went outside to speak with the driver of the Chrysler 200. He returned to his bags when the car left.
Investigators approached McGee and asked for identification. He handed them a Michigan ID card that confirmed his identity, court records show.
Police took McGee into custody and brought him with his bags to a separate area of the bus station.
A K-9 alerted police to check the bags, and they found a black water bottle in the yellow backpack, they said. Inside the water bottle was a baggie containing a light-colored powdery substance and another baggie containing a light-colored chunky substance.
When officials had trouble pulling the baggies out of the water bottle, McGee told them, “You won’t be able to get that out,” according to authorities.
Police checked a navy blue bag that had been concealed under McGee’s jacket and found an H&K VP9 9 mm semi-automatic pistol, they said. It was loaded with 10 rounds of ammunition. They also found an extended magazine with 32 rounds of ammunition inside, and a 50-round box of ammo.
The gun had been stolen in Detroit, the criminal complaint says.
The powdery substance from the water bottle was determined to be about 102.1 grams of fentanyl, officials said. The chunky substance was determined to be about 483.5 grams of methamphetamine.
Investigators also found $5,000 cash in McGee’s wallet.
Records show McGee has at least four previous felony convictions -- carrying a concealed weapon in August 1997, delivering/manufacturing marijuana or synthetic equivalents in June 2011 and January 2015, and dealing/manufacturing narcotics and felon in possession of a firearm in March 2017.
The complaint concludes there’s probable cause to charge McGee with possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, felon in possession of a firearm, and firearm possession in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
