COLUMBUS, Ind. – A routine traffic stop on Wednesday, in the 3000 block of North National Road by the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office, resulted in a local woman being taken into custody. The driver was identified as Samantha Banks, 44, of Columbus, and deputies say that she was unable to provide paperwork for the vehicle.
It was later confirmed that the vehicle was owned by an inmate in the Bartholomew County Jail. Officers said the inmate told them that Banks should not be in possession of the vehicle and requested that it be reported stolen.
A Columbus Police Department canine was brought to the scene and supposedly responded to the presence of narcotics inside the car. Drug-related items were allegedly located in the vehicle.
Banks was arrested and taken to the Bartholomew County Jail on preliminary charges of auto theft, possession of drug-related items, and driving while suspended.
