Nine pounds of marijuana worth $65,000 and five guns seized in three arrests; N.O. area singer among arrested; 6 ½ pounds sent by package delivery

St. Bernard Parish authorities continue to make large-scale marijuana arrests, particularly for the expensive, high potent kind, and are seeing guns associated with such arrests, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

“And we are seeing that the larger the amount of marijuana, the more we are seeing guns in the arrests,’’ Sheriff Pohlmann said. “Since the first week of March, guns have been found five times, including a shotgun, when sizeable amounts of marijuana were seized.

Brett Scipio, 30, a New Orleans area singer who performs under the name Weedy, was one of five people arrested in one operation involving five pounds of marijuana. A handgun was found in a vehicle Scipio and another man were stopped in. Scipio’s two juvenile children were also inside. Another handgun was in the home of a third man where the marijuana was delivered.

Five guns were seized in three cases in eight days, from April 3 to April 11, and nine pounds of marijuana worth $65,000 on the streets was confiscated. With two of the three busts – totaling 6 ½ pounds of the potent variety – the marijuana was sent to Chalmette by package delivery.

“We are recently finding larger amounts of marijuana and in a higher potency than we have normally seen,’’ Sheriff Pohlmann said. “These arrests come only weeks after we had a 10-pound marijuana arrest and a 2 1/2 – pound marijuana arrests in March.

“That goes against the opinion of some who ask, ‘What’s the harm in a little marijuana?’’ the sheriff said. “When guns are being used by dealers to protect their drugs, then obviously it is more than just a little thing. We don’t want people killing each other over drugs. That’s why we work to take the dope off the streets.”

Agents from the Sheriff’s Special Investigations Division, which includes the Narcotics Unit, made the arrests. The biggest was the five pounds of potent marijuana worth some $45,000 that was seized after being sent from Oakland, Calif., to a Chalmette house, the sheriff said.

Scipio, three other men and a woman were arrested in that case and two guns taken on April 3, Sheriff Pohlmann said. Several of the suspects are from the West Bank of Jefferson Parish but had set up operations in Chalmette.

Scipio, who is from the West Bank and had a CD release party in New Orleans performing as Weedy last December 12 on his 30th birthday, listed himself as unemployed when arrested and gave a Chalmette address, 3612 Despaux Drive. He has been released on $37,000 bond from St. Bernard Parish Prison.

The arrest wasn’t immediately released as authorities looked into who sent the package, with the marijuana encased in a vacuum-sealed bag. No other arrest has been made.

Scipio, Kevin Miller, 32 of Gretna, and Levi Arnold, 26, 303 E. Liberaux St., Chalmette, where the marijuana had been delivered by a package delivery service – were all booked with possession with intent to distribute the five pounds.

Scipio and Miller were also booked with possession of a firearm while in possession of the marijuana and possession of a controlled, dangerous substance in the presence of juveniles. Arnold was also booked with a similar firearms charge after a handgun was found in his home along with a small amount of marijuana, separate from the five pounds.

The other two suspects, Robert Williams, 30, and Naticole January, 27, live together in Chalmette and were booked with the same charge of possession with intent to distribute marijuana. But oddly, not for the five pounds but rather for having in their Chalmette residence 35 bags containing about 1.5 ounces total of marijuana, separate from the five pounds. Williams also was booked with being an accessory in the five-pound case.

“We identified and dismantled a drug-trafficking organization consisting of the five individuals,’’ said Maj, Chad Clark, head of SID. He said the five apparently came to Chalmette expressly to set up shop to receive high-grade marijuana, getting perhaps hundreds of thousands of dollars of marijuana.

“This was the type of organization that could have disrupted this entire community,’’ Clark said. “Now it is up to the judges and prosecutors to put them in prison.’’

Sheriff Pohlmann also said the department is looking closely at the use of package delivery companies and the mail system as means of bringing drugs to St. Bernard, adding that those businesses also put an emphasis on detecting drugs and cooperating with law enforcement.

“If you think you can get away for long with having drugs delivered to St. Bernard you are wrong,’’ the sheriff said.

In another case involving intercepting high-grade marijuana sent to Chalmette, one man was arrested with 1.6 pounds of marijuana worth up to $15,000 and he also ad three handguns and numerous pills.

After investigation, Tyrone Irby, 56, of 2101 Rosetta Drive, was arrested for possession with intent to distribute the marijuana.

In a case made the night of April 11, Martin Robin III, 33, of Florissant in eastern St. Bernard, was booked with possession with intent to distribute 2.6 pounds of marijuana worth $5,500 and possession of drug paraphernalia. He also had $408 cash.

Robin was seen by narcotics agent pulling to the rear of a bank on West Bernard Highway after hours and they confronted him, the sheriff said.

Robin was found to have 19 plastic bags of marijuana and a digital scale. He later cooperated and said he had about two more pounds of marijuana at home, consenting to a search in which the drugs were found, along with a second scale and a smoking device,

He was booked into St. Bernard Parish Prison. No bond information was available.