Police: Man selling pot to pay off debt to district attorney

Posted: Jun 25, 2012 11:06 AM by Tonya LaCoste
Updated: Jun 25, 2012 11:33 AM

An Opelousas man is accused of having and trying to sell more than $10,000 worth of marijuana. "During questioning, Antonio Rideaux stated that he was selling drugs to pay a fine to the District Attorney's Office for a previous drug charge," sid Opelousas Police spokesperson Sgt. Jody White. After pulling over Rideaux, 25, for an illegal right turn, officers said they smelled marijuana and Rideaux gave them permission to search his vehicle, according to White.

"Officers then located a green backpack containing two gallon sized plastic bags filled with suspected marijuana along with five smaller plastic bags filled with marijuana." The pot was worth about $2,000, and White said officers later found more marijuana worth more than $8,000 at Rideaux's home at 165 Claude Street.
A search warrant turned up two large plastic bags of marijuana near a safe in Rideaux's bedroom. "When Officers opened the safe, an additional three gallon sized plastic bags of marijuana was located," said White. Altogether, eight pounds of marijuana were found in the house.