Good Samaritan Cop Helps Stranded Motorist, Lands Arrest

A Sarasota County deputy was just trying to serve when he pulled over to help a motorist stranded Tuesday night. He ended up protecting instead when he discovered more than he expected inside the broken down vehicle.

According to the sheriff’s office, the deputy spotted a disabled vehicle on a Sarasota road Tuesday night. Noticing the car’s doors were open and the trunk was up, the deputy stopped to help.

The driver explained there had been an “electrical fire in the ashtray,” the sheriff’s office wrote on its Facebook page.

When the man went to the trunk to get a screwdriver, the deputy spotted something funny inside.

“The deputy noticed a black bag with a syringe and metal spoon,” the sheriff’s office wrote. “Turns out there were 41 syringes, 500 small plastic baggies, including some containing heroin, and other paraphernalia.”

Instead of getting his car fixed, Robert Rigby, 39, of Nokomis found himself getting a ride in the backseat of a cruiser instead. Rigby has been arrested three times this year on drug charges, the sheriff’s office says. All told, he has 29 arrests to his credit.

This time Rigby faces possession of a controlled substance and possession of narcotics equipment charges. He bonded out of the Sarasota County Jail on $3,000 bail.

Photo Credit: Robert Rigby/Sarasota County Jail

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