On November, 19, 2023, a Douglas police officer stopped a man on a bicycle after he allegedly ran the stop light at West Walker Street and North Peterson Avenue. The stop led to an arrest on illegal drug charges.
According to a report from the Douglas Police Department, the incident happened about 8:30 p.m. that day. The officer was patrolling in the area when she noticed the man on the bike, identified as Nathaniel Stange, 24, allegedly run the red light. The officer turned around and attempted to stop Stange. The report says that Stange looked back at the officer but kept pedaling. Then, the report says, he reached in his jacket, rode closer to the a grassy area, and threw something into the weeds. After doing so, he stopped.
In the report, the officer noted that Strange appeared to act nervous and listless. The officer wrote that she believed he either had illegal drugs on his person or he had discarded drugs before he stopped. During the stop, the report notes that Stange said the light was green when he went through it. The whole time, the report says, Stange kept looking back at the area in which the officer believed he threw down illegal drugs.
The officer asked Stange if she could search him and he consented, according to the report. The officer found a knife and a syringe that contained a clear liquid. Stange stated that he was a diabetic and the syringe contained insulin. After a second officer arrived on the scene, the first officer went back to the weeds and found a small container that contained suspected methamphetamine and pills.
Stange was arrested and charged with possession of a Schedule II Controlled Substance, possession of a Schedule IV Controlled substance, and a probation violation. The report says that the syringe was sent to the GBI lab to determine what it contained. Stange was taken to the Coffee County Jail. He has not been released.