Wanted Man Claims Drugs in His Pocket Aren’t His

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - On April 30, 2024, at approximately 9:40 a.m., a Missoula County Sheriff’s Office Deputy observed 42-year-old Daniel Szwedkowicz exiting a red car in the Town Pump parking lot near the Wye. The deputy knew Szwedkowicz had an active warrant for his arrest and yelled at him to stop several times, but Szwedkowicz did not initially comply.  

Eventually, however, he turned around and followed commands. The deputy arrested Szwedkowicz and searched him incident to arrest. The deputy located a white, crystalized substance in Szwedkowicz’s pants pocket.  

Szwedkowicz admitted he had some “bad stuff” in his pocket but claimed it did not belong to him and came from someone else. Based on training and experience, the deputy recognized the substance as methamphetamine.  

The deputy placed Szwedkowicz in his patrol car and then looked inside the red car through the windows. The deputy observed multiple cell phones on the passenger seat, a used ziplock baggie on the passenger floorboard, and a butane torch on the back seat. The deputy knows that items of this nature are commonly used to sell, store, or consume illegal narcotics.  

Also in the backseat, he observed a backpack that he knows belongs to Szwedkowicz based on their prior interactions. The deputy noted in his report that he previously searched Szwedkowicz’s backpack in another case and located a digital scale and ziplock baggies inside. The deputy obtained a warrant to search the red car. Inside, he located three glass pipes with white residue and a digital scale. 

READ MORE: Missoula News – Crime Reports 

The deputy transported Szwedkowicz to jail and also used the ACE spectrometer to test the crystal substance that was in Szwedkowicz’s pocket. It returned presumptively positive for methamphetamine. 

Szwedkowicz is currently being charged with felony criminal possession of dangerous drugs and criminal possession of drug paraphernalia. On May 1, 2024, Szwedkowicz made his initial appearance in Missoula Justice Court and his bond was set at $10,000. 

The information in this article was obtained from sources that are publicly viewable.