Moniteau County Sheriff Tony Wheatley met in his office with members of the press, on May 24 for a general update on the department's activities. Wheatley took office on Jan. 1, after being elected in November of 2016.
Wheatley said everything is going well, with the staff trained and "on the same page." He said reports of suspicious activity by county residents are up 92 percent and drug arrests are up by 85 percent. He said there have been more than 50 felony arrests since Jan. 1. He said he utilizes Facebook and other social media to let people know what is going on and how the department is trying to reduce crime.
"My background is in drug investigation," Wheatley said. Methamphetamine is big on the list, with eight out of 10 drug arrests in Moniteau County have been for methamphetamine. According to Wheatley, there have been zero methamphetamine labs found in Moniteau County. There is a real problem with that drug in the county, but the drugs are imported from Chicago, St. Louis and Kansas City.
He said those who are addicted to methamphetamine or other drugs should try to get help. Those who don't know where to get help "we will get help for you," he said.
He said there were a few trouble spots early on, with the areas near Latham and Clarksburg "hit hard" to clean the problem up. The department runs seat belt checkpoints and extra patrols in what have been high crime and high traffic areas. The idea is to let the community know that the department is "out there" in the middle of the day.
He reported there have been a couple of "good drug busts", with several repeat offenders taken into custody. He declined to get into specifics because many of them may still be in court. He also spoke of 10-15 different drug rings in the county, with interconnection between some of them.
Asked why he is so tough on drugs, Wheatley said reducing the amount of drug users lowers the amount of thefts, burglaries and assaults.
He also said highways have been targeted and made less safe for those transporting drugs, the more those people start going on the back roads. The department is now hitting a lot of back roads and rural areas. He said those who transport drugs study the maps and know the back roads. Out-of-area and out-of-state vehicles driven by people who know the way to get around by traveling on remote gravel roads are suspicious, and are checked out when seen by the officers or reported by local residents.
Wheatley's goal is to reduce the crime rate in the county to improve the safety, security and property of the residents of Moniteau County.