NEW PORT RICHEY — When a Pasco sheriff’s deputy approached the window of Samuel Collins’ Honda Del Sol about 2:30 a.m. Saturday, Collins had a baggy of marijuana in his mouth, the deputy reported. But that was just the appetizer. To swallow the baggy, Collins, 28, grabbed a double cheeseburger with both hands and began “shoving the burger into his mouth,” according to the report. The deputy, who stopped Collins off U.S. 19 and State Road 54 after seeing a McDonald’s bag fly out his window, yelled for Collins to spit it out. Yet Collins continued to chew and swallow, the report states, until the deputy grabbed him by his left arm and pulled him to the ground. Collins spit out the baggy and a small clear wrapper of marijuana, and the deputy found a joint on the passenger seat, the report states. Collins, who showed signs of drug and alcohol use, said he was sorry for trying to swallow the “weed” and told deputies he had a suspended license and was afraid of being arrested, the report states. Collins was charged with marijuana possession, tampering with evidence and driving without a license. Collins, a Fort Lauderdale native, paid his bond and was released from the Land O’Lakes jail Sunday. He was last arrested New Year’s Day for failing to appear on a marijuana possession charge, records show.
