REDDING: Man brings 7-month-old daughter during alleged heroin “drug dealing excursion”
REDDING — Redding Police Department’s Neighborhood Police Unit arrested three alleged drug dealers, including a man who officials say brought his 7-month-old, infant daughter with him during a “drug dealing excursion around town,” Thursday, July 20, according to police officials.
While conducting proactive patrol in the area of Trinity Street near Hinkle’s Market, NPU officers observed “activity consistent with a drug transaction,” Redding Police Sergeant Walt Bullington explained in a written press release after the arrest.
Officials spotted the alleged drug deal happening about 10 p.m., near a parked vehicle in a lot next to Trinity Street.
During their investigation officers contacted two men who were inside the parked vehicle. Officers identified the subjects as 23-year-old Deandre Dewayne Sutton-Wilson and 20-year-old Robert Tyrelle Pride. Officers also found Sutton-Wilson’s 7-month-old daughter inside the vehicle with her father and the other man. According to officials, Sutton-Wilson had brought his infant with him and Pride as the two men traveled around Redding making numerous drug deals.
“Observations and admissions from the two males led to a search of Pride who was found in possession of heroin for sales, packaging, and hypodermic syringes and needles,” said Bullington. “A search of Sutton-Wilson found him to be holding the cash they had been collecting from their drug deals throughout the day.”
Both Sutton-Wilson and Pride allegedly admitted to officers they had been selling heroin from the vehicle while making stops around the city of Redding.
Officers arrested the two men and both were booked at Shasta County Jail on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance, possession of heroin for sales and child endangerment.
Both Sutton-Wilson and Pride remain in custody, held on $50,000 bail.
Bullington did not specify the disposition of Sutton-Wilson’s daughter after her father’s arrest.
At about the same time, while patrolling the east side business district of Redding, other NPU officers made contact with Robert Lee Croninmills, 26, of Shingletown. Officials recognized Croninmills from several previous arrests for heroin sales.
While speaking with Croninmills, officers discovered the man was “holding over $2,200 dollars cash in one hand and heroin in the other,” said Bullington.
Croninmills, who has only been out of jail for 35 days, was sentenced to three years incarceration following “several criminal convictions” that stemmed from prior NPU-related drug sales cases, according to Bullington.
Croninmills’ incarceration began in September 2016 and he was released from jail just over one month ago to serve the remainder of his sentence on a work release program, Bullington explained.
During their investigation, NPU officers determined Croninmills “traveled from Shingletown to Redding several times a week to participate in work release and then to sell heroin to local addicts,” said Bullington.
After their investigation, officers booked Croninmills into Shasta County Jail on suspicion of possession of heroin for sale, possession of a controlled substance, possession of narcotics-related paraphernalia and violation of probation. He remains in custody, held without bail.
Anyone with information about either of these incidents or three arrests is encouraged to contact Redding police officials at (530) 776-0306. Callers can refer to incident file numbers 17-51712 and 17-51805 and can remain anonymous.
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Trevor Montgomery runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News and Anza Valley Outlook and also writes for Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg and breaking his back in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.
s a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.