Alachua man in pre-trial diversion program arrested for selling drugs

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Derrick Reng Washington, 66, of Alachua, was arrested yesterday after a deputy reportedly found distribution quantities of marijuana and fentanyl in his truck during a traffic stop.

At about 5:55 p.m. on November 5, an Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy conducted a traffic stop in the Phoenix area on a pickup truck that failed to stop at a stop sign. Washington, the driver of the vehicle, reportedly refused to provide consent to search his vehicle, so a Narcotics Detector K-9 conducted an open-air sniff of the vehicle and alerted to contraband.

A probable cause search reportedly produced “numerous” baggies in the cab of the truck and two traffic cones in the bed. A plastic bag found inside one of the traffic cones reportedly contained about 1.7 grams of fentanyl and about 37.8 grams of marijuana.

Washington has been charged with possession of fentanyl with intent to sell, maintaining a vehicle for the purpose of selling drugs, possession of marijuana with intent to sell, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Washington has 12 felony convictions (two violent) and four misdemeanor convictions (non-violent); he has served three state prison sentences, with his most recent release in 2008.

He is currently in a Veterans Court pre-trial diversion program that began with an arrest for cocaine possession in 2023. The day after entering into the program, which requires him to participate in counseling sessions and submit to urine testing, his urine tested positive for THC and cocaine. Washington reportedly told an official that the cocaine must have entered his system through his hands when he cut up cocaine so he could sell it; he reportedly told a different official that he was cutting up the cocaine for his girlfriend. Although the program was originally supposed to last for 12 months, he has still not completed it, and yesterday’s arrest was reported as a violation of the conditions of that program.

Judge Adam Lee set bail at $100,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.