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Appearing before Judge Jessica Fehr on Tuesday, Raymond Lee Horn pled not guilty to felony charges of criminal possession of dangerous drugs, criminal possession of dangerous drugs with intent to distribute, unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted person, as well as a misdemeanor count of criminal possession of drug paraphernalia.

As outlined in the charging documents, in the early morning hours of July 10, Trooper Steve Spurr was contacted by Thompson Falls Police Officer Roy Scott concerning a traffic stop that Officer Scott had just conducted. Officer Scott advised that he had seized the license plates off the silver car he stopped, as the plates were fake, and that the car was potentially trying to continue driving to Missoula without plates. Trooper Spurr was parked near Plains a few hours later, observed a silver car with no license plates pull into the Sinclair gas station, and initiated a stop.

Trooper Spurr found three occupants within the car, with the driver, Horn, and passenger Nicholace Thomas, being on probation from Idaho, according to the affidavit. After questioning the two men, both admitted that they did not have permission from their probation officers to be traveling out of state. Trooper Spurr followed up with the probation officers, who confirmed that information and gave permission for Horn’s car to be searched. Both men were taken into custody and transported to the Sanders County Jail, while the third occupant was allowed to gather his belongings and leave.

As alleged in the charging documents, upon searching the vehicle, a black backpack was located on the floor of the front passenger seat, containing a prescription in Thomas’s name, along with additional loose pills. In the back seat, a red backpack was found, containing a crystal chunk that field tested positive for methamphetamine, as well as a clipboard with a glass pipe containing burned residue. Both Horn and Thomas denied ownership. Initially, Trooper Spurr was unable to search the trunk, as the lock had been damaged and the key would not open it. After the vehicle was towed, the trunk was pried open, where Trooper Spurr located a metal box containing about 1,000 small round blue pills, which were initially visually identified as oxycodone, but were later suspected to be fentanyl and forwarded to the crime lab for further testing. Additionally, a 9mm handgun with a fully loaded magazine was located next to the box. The serial number came back showing that the handgun had been reported stolen to the Missoula City Police.

Trooper Spurr questioned Horn further at the jail, where Horn allegedly claimed to not know anything about the trunk’s contents, saying he hadn’t been in the trunk “in a while.” Horn was advised that he was going to be charged for possessing the items as they were located in his vehicle while he was driving.

Judge Fehr set this matter for jury trial on January 8, 2024.