Career offender arrested after deputies report finding almost 150 grams of drugs hidden in his pants

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Curtis Lamar Spruce, 52, a career offender with at least 20 felony convictions, was arrested yesterday after deputies reported finding almost 150 grams of drugs hidden in his pants during a traffic stop.

At about 9:50 a.m. on April 17, an Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy conducted a traffic stop on an SUV for stopping past the stop line and obstructing the crosswalk at the intersection of East University Avenue and SE 13th Street.

The deputy instructed the driver, later identified as Spruce, to get out of the vehicle, but he allegedly refused, saying he did not want to get out and wanted the deputy to come to his vehicle. The deputy reported that during this time, he could see Spruce making numerous furtive movements, reaching down into the vehicle and then toward his body.

Backup units arrived to pin in the SUV, and deputies conducted a high-risk stop to remove him from the SUV; Spruce was arrested at that time for resisting lawful commands.

A search incident to arrest reportedly found a bag inside his underwear, between his buttocks, that contained the following:

• About 109 grams of a clear crystalline substance that tested positive for methamphetamines;
• About 14 grams of a white powdery substance that tested positive for cocaine;
• About 1.7 grams of an off-white powdery substance that tested positive for fentanyl;
• About 8 grams of multi-colored pressed pills that tested positive for fentanyl;
• One pill with an imprint consistent with Percocet.

While the search was being conducted, a second bag reportedly fell out of Spruce’s left pant leg onto the ground. This bag reportedly contained about 16.2 grams of a white rock-like substance that appeared to be crack cocaine and tested positive for cocaine.

The traffic stop took place within 1,000 feet of a church.

Spruce has been charged with trafficking in amphetamines, trafficking in cocaine, trafficking in fentanyl, possession of methamphetamines within 1,000 feet of a church, tampering with evidence, possessing a vehicle for the purpose of trafficking drugs, possession of drug paraphernalia, and resisting an officer without violence.

Spruce is a designated career offender who has at least 20 felony convictions and has served five state prison sentences, with his most recent release in 2021 after serving a 20-year sentence for cocaine trafficking. Judge Denise Ferrero ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s Office to hold him without bail until trial; if the judge denies the motion, bail will be set at that hearing.

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.