Missoula K-9 Alerts to Drugs in a Trailer, Dealer Gets Arrested
Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - On October 18, 2024, a Missoula Police Department Officer observed a white Fleetwood tow behind a trailer on Ronan Street. The officer recognized the trailer as belonging to 58-year-old David Dilley. The officer also knew Dilley had an active arrest warrant. Other officers arrived on scene and they observed Dilley rummaging through a backpack.
Dilley exited the trailer and was arrested on his warrants. During a search incident to arrest, law enforcement located a glass methamphetamine pipe. Dilley was arrested and transported to the Missoula County Detention Facility.
An officer also observed a used hypodermic syringe lying on the sidewalk directly next to the camper. There were no other campers or vehicles parked in the area. The officer, who is K-9 certified and had K-9 Lux with her, had K-9 Lux walk around the trailer. K-9 Lux alerted that the trailer contained dangerous drugs.
Officers applied for a search warrant, seized the trailer, and eventually transported the trailer to the Missoula City Police Impound lot to be searched. The warrant was granted and officers executed a search of the trailer.
Officers searched the backpack Dilley was rummaging through when they first approached the trailer. They located a weight scale, a small clear plastic baggie of meth, Narcan, tourniquets, several unused small plastic baggies, $2,600 in various bills, a digital scale with white powdery residue, two meth pipes with burnt residue, a blue Fentanyl pill, two medium plastic baggies containing methamphetamine, and several unused hypodermic syringes. Officers know from training and experience that such amounts of methamphetamine are common with distribution.
Dilley Sends a Friend to Grab His Cash
After Dilley was booked into the jail, but before officers transported the trailer to the impound lot, a van parked on the curb on Ronan Street behind the officer’s patrol car. A male exited the vehicle and said that he “got a call from David Dilley to come get the money off his bed.”
The officer told the male that the trailer was seized and he would not be permitted to enter. The male said Dilley called him from the jail, said he left $2,000 on his bed, and that he needed it for bail money. Then the male left the scene after being told he would not gain access to the trailer.
READ MORE: Missoula News - Crime Reports
The officer noted the only cash found in the trailer was the $2,600 that was in a case in the backpack along with the two larger baggies of meth. This interaction solidified the officer’s belief that Dilley had knowledge of the money and dangerous drugs located in the backpack.
Dilley is currently being charged with felony criminal possession with intent to distribute, felony criminal possession of dangerous drugs, unlawful use/possession of property subject to criminal forfeiture, and criminal possession of drug paraphernalia. His bond was set at $100,000.
The information in this article was obtained from sources that are publicly viewable.