State Trooper Locates Missing Juvenile in Haywood County

NASHVILLE --- A Tennessee State Trooper located a missing juvenile during a traffic stop in Haywood County during the early morning hours on Tuesday.

Trooper Phillip Long, a member of the Tennessee Highway Patrol’s West Bureau Interdiction Plus Team, was conducting stationary radar on Interstate 40 eastbound when he observed a 2001 Mitsubishi Eclipse with a missing brake light. He initiated a traffic stop on the Oklahoma registered vehicle at the 43 mile marker at approximately 1:20 a.m. this morning. The vehicle was occupied by a male driver and two female passengers.

Trooper Long initially detected an odor of marijuana after speaking with the driver, who alleged that the three were on their way to visit family in Connecticut. Further investigation revealed suspicious and nervous behavior from a female passenger in the backseat.

Trooper Long then requested K-9 assistance, and Trooper Allen Leverette, also of the agency’s Interdiction Plus team, responded to the scene.  Trooper Leverette deployed his K-9, which alerted to the presence of drugs. Investigators then conducted a probable cause search of the vehicle and discovered a small amount of marijuana on the driver’s side door, prescription drugs and other drug paraphernalia.

Additionally, a validation check through the THP Communications Center on all of the vehicle occupants revealed the backseat female passenger was listed as a missing person out of Oklahoma. The juvenile was taken into the custody of the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services.

The driver, Brandon F. Demanche, 18, of Weatherford, Okla., was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, while Kaya D. Bohay, the front seat passenger, was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. They were booked into the Haywood County Jail.

Photos of the suspects can be obtained from the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office.

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security’s (www.TN.Gov/safety) mission is to ensure the safety and general welfare of the public.  The department encompasses the Tennessee Highway Patrol, the Office of Homeland Security and Driver License Services. General areas of responsibility include law enforcement, safety education, motorist services and terrorism prevention.   

###