Defective Equipment Traffic Stop Leads to Drug Trafficking and Weapons Charge Arrest

Very late Sunday night, Deputies conducted a traffic stop in the area of East 19^th Street and South Washington Avenue on a white Ford F150 for defective equipment (no license plate lights).  Deputies made contact with the driver and requested backup with a K9 Unit.  After a check with Dispatch, the driver was found to be on probation for a charge of Possession of a Controlled Substance.  After speaking with the driver, the K9 alerted positively for the vehicle.  The driver was asked why the animal would be alerting positively, asking him if there was anything Deputies needed to know.  The driver cut off the Deputy, saying, “There is, my Grandpa’s gun”.   After asking the driver if he was a convicted felon, the driver cut off the Deputy again, saying, “I take it because I’m going fishing, that’s what I’m doing, I got minnows in there because we are going fishing at Spring Fork.”

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Deputies conducted a probable cause search of the vehicle and located a single shot 16 gage Winchester shotgun.  Deputies also found a wallet between the driver’s seat and center seat.  It had the driver’s ID and his Probation and Parole card inside of it. In a small pouch inside the wallet, Deputies found a clear plastic baggie with a white crystal substance inside.  The driver denied the substance was his. All items were seized and taken back to the Pettis County Sheriff’s Office.  The clear plastic baggie was tested and registered as 0.6 grams* of Fentanyl  and Methamphetamine.

Kevin Henry Lee, 37, of Sedalia, was arrested on charges of felony Trafficking Drugs in the 2^nd Degree, felony Possession of a  Controlled Substance, felony  Unlawful Possession of a Firearm**, felony Unlawful Use of a Weapon (Possession of a Weapon and a felony Controlled Substance).

The passenger in the vehicle, Jessica Sandra Seeley, 32, of La Monte, was found to have two warrants for her arrest.  The first was issued in October 2024 from Pettis County after an incident in July of 2024.  In that incident, Deputies made contact with a subject at the Stone Creek Plaza, who had just located his own stolen truck.  The Deputies recognized the caller and the truck from a search warrant execution a few days earlier.  The reporting party stated that while he was in jail, his on again off again girlfriend (Seeley) took his truck without permission from his house.  Also with the truck were three other people, one of whom was the suspect.  One of the occupants stated the suspect, Seeley, had given them a ride and offered to sell them the truck for $2,000.  Seeley accepted the money, and gave him the title which had a signature on the back.  The reporting party stated he did not sign the title, nor did he plan to sell the truck, stating the suspect never had permission to take or sell the truck.  A warrant on charges of felony Stealing (Motor Vehicle, Watercraft or Aircraft) was issued in October with a bond of $7500 cash or surety.

The other warrant was issued from Pettis County in October of 2024 after an incident in July of 2024.  In that incident, Deputies and the Mid Missouri Drug Task force executed a search warrant in La Monte.  One of the subjects present at the time was Seeley, who was taken into custody in the bedroom of the residence.  A search of the residence led to the recovery of a baggie containing a white substance that field tested positively for methamphetamine.  Also found was a large shard of methamphetamine, both sitting on the living room table.  Numerous glass smoking devices containing a white substance were also found in the living room.  In the bedroom, next to Seeley, was a glass smoking device with a measurable amount of a white substance that later tested positively for Methamphetamine.  Seeley denied knowing anything about anything found in the residence.   A warrant was issued on charges of felony Possession of a Controlled Substance, with a bond of $7500 cash or surety.

Both Lee and Seeley were transported to the Pettis County Jail.  Lee was booked in pending a $100,000 cash or surety bond, and Seeley was booked in with her bond on both warrants totaling to $15,000 cash or surety.

*The statutory limit for a Trafficking charge is 20 milligrams. Lee had 0.6 grams in his possession, which is 600 milligrams.
**The probable cause report filed in Casenet 24PT-CR01774 notes that Lee is a convicted felon on original charges of Possession of a Controlled Substance from Livingston County in 2023. Both Missouri and Federal law prohibit felons from owning or possessing a firearm.