HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — Two individuals pulled over in a stolen vehicle avoided theft charges but were arrested on drug charges.
Joseph Velasco and Joneen Pangelinan were in a vehicle pulled over by police on Thursday just after midnight. According to police, the traffic stop was due to defective headlights, but when police researched the license plate number the vehicle came back as “reported stolen.”
A magistrate’s complaint filed in the Superior Court of Guam against the two individuals noted that drug paraphernalia was discovered during a search of the vehicle.
As Pangelinan opened the door and stepped out, the officer observed Pangelinan “reach under her seat and pick up a glass pipe stained with a frosty residue,” the complaint said.
The complaint states that Pangelinan denied ownership of the pipe. The pipe was tested and the test returned a positive field test result for methamphetamine.
“Pangelinan uttered, ‘That’s not mine,’ and threw the pipe back onto the front passenger seat. Pangelinan kept trying to sit back in the vehicle which the officer instructed her to exit, which she complied and was guided to the front of the vehicle to be monitored by another officer,” the complaint said.
Police officers also reported the discovery of a second glass pipe stained with suspected methamphetamine residue in a clear plastic container under Velasco’s seat.
Velasco was interviewed by police about the reported theft of the vehicle but no details of the interrogation were included in the court complaint.
Velasco and Pangelinan were charged with possession of a Scheduled II controlled substance as a third-degree felony.
Pangelinan was released on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond while Velasco was detained at the Department of Corrections with cash bail set at $5,000.
Joseph Velasco
Joneen Pangelinan
