Leitchfield man with warrants, previously granted pre-trial diversion, busted with over an ounce of meth

A Leitchfield man arrested multiple times over the last two years and who was granted pre-trial diversion on a drug charge has been busted with over an ounce of methamphetamine.

Sunday night at approximately 10:30, Leitchfield Police Officer Ty Whitaker observed a westbound Ford Explorer “blow through the red light” at the intersection of Elizabethtown Road and the William Thomason Byway.

Whitaker conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle adjacent to Murphy USA gas station in the Walmart parking lot.

The officer made contact with the driver, 27-year-old Ronny Johnson and passenger, 21-year-old Gavin Petty, who had two warrants for his arrest. One of the warrants is out of District Court and the other a drug-related warrant out of Circuit Court.

Soon after the stop, Leitchfield Officers Chuck Hoover, Wally Ritter and Justin Cockerel along with Grayson County Deputy Sean Fentress with K-9 Zeus arrived on scene.

Fentress deployed Zeus around the vehicle, with the drug dog alerting on the Ford.

During a search of the suspect and vehicle, police located over an ounce of methamphetamine hidden behind the SUV’s glove box, which Petty said was his. A small baggie containing methamphetamine residue was found on Petty as well.

Petty was arrested and charged with trafficking in a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and failure to wear a seat belt.

He was lodged in the Grayson County Detention Center. Johnson was cited for running a red light.

Additional charges are possible for both suspects.

Petty, in July of this year, was arrested by LPD Officer Eugene Cain on warrants charging the suspect with possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine), fleeing or evading police (on foot), giving an officer false identifying information, and possession of drug paraphernalia along with traffic-related counts.

During that arrest, Cain found methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia, resulting in additional charges for Petty.

Petty, who spent months on the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office list of Most Wanted suspects in 2022, was collared in May 2022 on several felony warrants after Grayson County Chief Deputy Sonny Poteet discovered Petty living out of a car in a wooded area off Old Hartford Road.

He was previously granted pre-trial diversion on a methamphetamine possession charge.

(Photo: Gavin Petty mugshot from July 2023 arrest in Grayson Co.)