Kan. man faces drug charges

Published 4:30 pm Thursday, May 30, 2013

A 30-year-old Kansas man is facing charges for attempting to flee from Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office deputies after they allegedly found him with drugs at Harmony Park.

Arthur Alvin Ormsby, of Shawnee, Kan., faces one count of second-degree methamphetamine possession, one count of fifth-degree possession of MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy, and one count of escape from custody. The charges are all felonies.

Ormsby was one of several arrested over the weekend at the park, along the western shore of Geneva Lake, during a music festival. Festivals at Harmony Park often draw people from around the Midwest.

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He was found to have two sandwich-sized baggies of marijuana, pills that field-tested positive for methamphetamine and cocaine, along with multiple baggies containing methamphetamine, according to Freeborn County District Court records.

Files state deputies found Ormsby while on patrol at the park at 9:31 p.m. Saturday. One of the deputies saw a Chevrolet Malibu in the parking lot at the campground and noticed that the dome light was on and that the engine was not running.

On closer view, they allegedly saw three people in the car and saw Ormsby roll up a clear plastic bag containing marijuana and a passenger in the back seat holding a glass pipe.

When the deputies approached the car and a passenger happened to open a door, they could immediately smell a strong smell of burnt marijuana, court records stated.

Reports stated the two passengers were searched but were not found with illegal items. When Ormsby was asked whether he had any other drugs on him, he reportedly slammed the door to the car, pushed the deputy against the vehicle and ran toward the camping area.

One of the deputies ran after Ormsby and tackled him about three car lengths away from the vehicle, according to court files.

After a deputy placed Ormsby in handcuffs, he reportedly attempted to flee a second time but fell, sustaining a cut to his head. He was treated by ambulance crews for the injury.

Ormsby’s most serious charge of second-degree meth possession carries a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.