Man pulled over in Carroll County church parking lot arrested on drug, gun charges

Deputies said they found a ‘substantial amount’ of suspected meth

James Eric Sawyers

CARROLL COUNTY, Va. – A North Carolina man faces multiple charges after authorities said he had illegal drugs and weapons.

On Feb. 13, members of the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office conducted a consensual encounter om who they believed was a suspicious man in a Chevrolet pickup in the parking lot of Gladesboro Evangelical Lutheran Church.

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While speaking with James Eric Sawyers, of Pilot Mountain, North Carolina, deputies said they smelled marijuana, which prompted a search of both him and the pickup.

While searching Sawyers, deputies said they found what was believed to be meth.

Upon searching his truck, a “substantial amount” of suspected meth was found, according to the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office.

Also found during that search was a substantial amount of suspected clonazepam and Marijuana, as well as a sawed-off 12-gauge shotgun, a .410 shotgun and a .22-caliber rifle.

Sawyers was arrested and later charged with the following:

  • Possession with the the intent to distribute meth
  • Possession with the intent to distribute clonazepam
  • Possession with the intent to distribute marijuana
  • Possession of a firearm while in possession of a controlled substance
  • Possession of a sawed-off shotgun.

Sawyers was later transported to the New River Valley Regional Jail and held without bail.