Robert Ward was found guilty of four drug related charges following a trial in Charlotte County.
Ward was found guilty of Trafficking in Amphetamines, Possession of Paraphernalia, and two
counts of Possession of a Controlled Substance.
In August 2019, just after 6 p.m., a Charlotte County Sheriff’s deputy attempted to make a traffic
stop near Mango Drive in Punta Gorda. The driver, Ward, accelerated and drove around a corner,
which has a blind spot due to heavy brush. He pulled into a driveway of a friend and was
detained by the deputy. A search of his car revealed heroin hidden in a cigarette box and a
methamphetamine pipe. Ward was then arrested.
Another deputy returned to the scene and was alerted by a concerned citizen. The citizen showed
the deputy drugs he found on his property, just a few feet from the roadway. The property is
along the blind spot of the road, where the driver drove past, momentarily out of the sight of the
deputy. There was heroin in the same type of cigarette box found in the defendant’s car. There
was also 20 grams of methamphetamine and four oxycodone pills found.
Assistant State Attorney Scott Patterson prosecuted the case. Sentencing is scheduled for May
14th.
Samantha Syoen
Communications Director
State Attorney’s Office
239-533-1125
ssyoen@sao20.org