Drug Charges for Sheriff Hopeful's Son

The 25-year-old son of a man running for Manatee County Sheriff found himself behind bars over the weekend.

Charles Michael Wells was charged with fleeing and eluding and drug possession after he was pulled over by a deputy on Bayshore Drive just after midnight Saturday.

According to an arrest report, a deputy acted on a tip that Wells was in the county to purchase heroin. The deputy was able to find out the make and model vehicle Wells might be traveling in and also learned his license had been suspended on Dec. 2. When the deputy spotted the car Wells was in heading on U.S. 19 toward the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, he attempted to pull over the vehicle.

Wells, the report said, tried to flee and pulled away doing in excess of 80 mph in a residential area.

When the deputy clocked his own speed at nearly 75 mph, he discontinued the chase, but noticed the vehicle head down a dead-end street. The driver “put his hands out the window,” the report said.

It was there the deputy was able to bring Wells into custody.

A post-Miranda search of Wells’ vehicle turned up a glass pipe with marijuana residue inside it, the report noted. Deputies also found bags and a digital scale. A search of the roadway netted “several small bags of heroin and marijuana” believed to have been tossed out by Wells, the report said. Those bags were taken into evidence to be checked for DNA and fingerprints, the report noted.

Wells is the son of Col. Rick Wells, who is the number two at the sheriff’s office. Wells announced his intention to run for the seat currently held by retiring Sheriff Brad Steube back in July.

Charles Wells was charged with drug possession and fleeing and eluding. He was released from the Manatee County Jail Monday in lieu of $5,500 bond, jail records indicate.

Booking photo courtesy of the Manatee County Jail