On May 22nd, 2023, Florida Fish and Wildlife officers Ryan Gilbert and Thomas Reed are on foot patrol in the W with the Lakuchi State Forest investigating reports of illegal campsites that were observed in the area. After following a half a mile foot trail into the woods, the officers spotted a camouflage tarp with a tent behind it. Before the video starts, I want to ask you guys something. Do you think we should allow just anyone to live on the public lands? Or are you like me and you just know they'll turn into Skid Row? And if you like today's video, hit that sub button because I got a lot more videos coming at you guys and you don't want to miss these. Hey, law enforcement Florida Fish and Wildlife. Anybody here? Come on out. How many of y'all's back there? All right. Come on out here, man. Grab IDs if you have them. You got any weapons back there? Okay. Okay. Got a set up back here. You guys got IDs on you? ID. You do have yours? Yes, sir. I'm going to cut this down just so I got this open back here. You the only ones back here right now? Yeah. Is there anybody else staying here or just you guys? No sir, we didn't know it was just us. Okay. Gotcha. You know this is state forest, right? We thought we could camp here. Our buddy said we could. Yeah. There's no uh no camping allowed anywhere out here in the state forest. So, okay. How long you been camping here for? We just been here for a couple weeks. Where's he? Where'd he go? All right. Did you say you do have an ID on you or you don't? Okay, can we get that? And you said you have one name? I don't have it on me. You don't have one on you? Okay, let's get your name and date first. What's your first name, man? Michelle. Is most of the stuff out here you guys or is it your buddies or some of it? Is he just left it for you to have or is he coming back for it? I don't know. He left it all to you. Okay. But I got all cleared up and everything. Yeah, that's what we'll need is just it all cleaned up and cleared up. The time frames kind of subjective, but I mean you keep cleaning it out is another thing. You got to have everything out because it's a whole another separate violation for leaving trash, you know, dumping or littering on a state forest as well. So, how long are you thinking you need to get it all out? Uh, this way get a couple days cuz he's got that one up there too. That one's his also. Yeah. Okay. Is there any more further back or is this the last one? This is the last one we know. Okay. You guys have any drugs or anything in the canyon? Not like if a canine came back here, you're not going to find any. Okay. Take a look around real quick while you hang out with him. You said y'all were only here a couple of nights and he's been here a few weeks. Yeah. Okay. You guys have anywhere else to go or what's what's the plan from here? Not in this WMA. There's camping in Citrus W. Huh? Yeah. Where's your water at? It's on your bed. What? It's on your bed. No, I sit. This part's a bit confusing, so I'm going to interject. So, the officer follows her back to the tent and spots several syringe plungers on top of the air mattress. When he asks about them, Michelle states that they aren't hers. Let me see your arms. Only thing I have is gangling cyst. That's not a miss. What is it? A gangling cyst. Okay, let me see your arms there. There's a plunger right here, the back side of a syringe. If I search this whole thing, you really I'm not going to find any drugs. Just going to find random needles. Well, I'm I guess what I'm getting at is if I find it and it's not a crazy amount or anything like that. It's one thing if I call a canine out here and they locate stuff and I have to drag the sheriff's office out here to get you guys to tell the truth, it's going to be a different different story. I understand. I understand in addictions and addiction stuff. I just need to know if there's something here when we're here, how much it is, and if it's not enough that I need to make it a bigger thing. So, I already know that somebody's shooting up here. So, I just need to know where it is and how much it is. If it's enough that we need to make an issue about it or if it's a little bit, that's not going to be a big deal. Okay. So, let's not do the bull stuff and just uh be honest. Okay. What's the cord go back in the woods for? The string back into the woods. What does that do? There's nothing in the baggie though. I don't have anything left. Okay. And I don't shoot it. I eat it. You eat it? Yeah. Oh, yeah. Okay. You guys don't camp or anything? No, I don't do anything. I didn't do anything at all. I came here. He didn't even know that I ate it. He didn't. He didn't know. No, he had no idea. Honest to God. Okay. Um, that's all. Yeah. No, that's all that's all you have in the bag or anything? That's it. Okay. There's just powder down there next week and uh going to talk to my family about everything and everything. Rhode Island. Ford Island. Rhode Island. Oh, Rhode Island. Let me check the rest of your bag. Um, make sure there's nothing else in there. It's just a Where did the uh What did you say? Just a broken needle. There's nothing else in my bag. What do you have the needle for if you're eating it? Because I when I climb them on the ground, I don't want kids to pick them up. So, I pick them up and they pull them out, honestly. See? Oh, you break the needles off so nobody gets poked with it. Yep. I used to eat that when I saw meals. I was shot up at 18 and um ever since then. You've been on drugs since you're 18. No, I was shot up. Oh, somebody else did. Yeah. All right. You get stand. Let me dig through this stuff. I'm going to search all these little compartments and stuff I got. Hang out with her here. Come talk to me for a second. What's your name? Kevin. Kevin. Kevin. All right, come here real quick. What's the deal? You don't You don't do nothing. My me and my fiance I used to back in the day. I went to the path and everything. Okay. Me and my fiance were killed a while back. What now? Me and my fiance were killed. You and your fiance were both killed? Yes. back at Chris River um motel. Mhm. And I found her. I came back and I found her dead after I died in the truck. Somebody gave me some and her or something bad. Roxy 30, but they didn't say it was a press. Okay. Me and her 10350. I came back to the hotel and I didn't know I didn't I don't know people that all that crap that's just not me I just came out here to get away from everything in town everything going crazy new people everything freaking I'm sorry about this yeah I mean We'll get it all cleaned up. Yeah. Not like a pile of or anything, but um but if I So if I search his whole camp, I'm not going to find any other paraphernalia. Nothing nothing else. I said my buddy was here. You might find he was diabetic or he did it his way. But freaking I don't know. I mean I I know like the natural thing is to just like lie and stuff. I know your buddy. I don't know if he's die back or not, but obviously somebody shooting up around the camp. I don't I don't care. The only thing I care about is if there's more in the camp, if if somebody goes to jail for this, if you're involved with it, or if it's just her. Those are the kind of questions I I care about. You know what I'm saying? And I mean, I don't She's obviously has a, you know, addict. I mean, I'm not knocking anybody for having addiction. I know it's hard to get rid of and stuff, but sometimes sometimes going to jail is a better thing to get get cleaned up. I mean, I don't know her history. I don't know yours or any of that kind of stuff. I mean, this was you're not this was in her bag, all that kind of stuff. So, I'm not stretching it to you. I just seeing where where you're sitting with all this kind of stuff and what you think if it's if it's a her problem or if it's I mean there's a lot of stuff that we could charge you with that I cannot charge you with but like avoiding the possession charge is going to be a a tough one. Does she have a history or anything like charges? Sure. Okay. Is this your what? Girlfriend. Friend. Yeah. I got you. Yeah. Yeah, I got you, man. That's tough. Well, um I know he's giving you a big break on the campsite and stuff like that already. Um 636. You're not look back. I'll test this to see if it if it sometimes I've had it before where you actually test say it solves all the problems because the last thing I'm not like like I enjoy going around and busting folks are having a hard time but I'll see it two ways. One is the law is a law. It's illegal and if it's going to get her cleaned up, it might not be the worst thing for I mean, seriously, I I think forestry would help you out. If you guys could get maybe some of these tarps and just put the majority of this crap in there, drag it out to where they can at least throw it in a dumpster. That'd be a big Okay. big helpful thing for them. All right. So, all right. Let me um let me walk out there with her and test this and see where we're at. All right, man. No other drugs or anything. I haven't seen some of the smaller compartment where she went through all the rest. That's it. They're all empty. I literally just put it all in the main compartment. Just the needles. Let's go test uh test this. See if it if it test. Have you used it this out of this bag? Is it? It's definitely um where the needles at They're all in there. It's all in there. Yeah. I don't know. Y'all are tougher than me. I don't know how you do it. All right. Um I use that bag for trash. What's that? I use a bag for trash. trash. Yeah. No, I hear you. Um, we're going to walk out with the truck and test this. See if it tests positive or not. Our truck's I don't know what. Quarter mile, half mile back over there in the woods. Are you going to jail if it's positive? You said um Yeah, I'm not I'm not sure. I'm going to see what I can do. I'm thinking I'm thinking what I'll do is not charge it for this paraphernalia stuff, these cool and stuff. Save that charge. You know what I'm saying? You won't charge me? Well, you said you wouldn't charge me if I was honest. I said I'd work with you and I am working with you. You are, but please don't put me in jail. I want to see my kids. I understand that, but you guys got a whole another situation. You're obviously an addict. Maybe going I'm an addict. No, I just literally freaking started doing it because I was freaking alone and didn't really have anyone. Oh, it might be a good thing for you to get clean. I am getting clean. I I just told you I was only my family. I have kids in Rhode Island. Okay. Still got drugs on here though. So it's hard to get clean when you got drugs. Just using that money to get to get this junk. I'm not using the money to get drugs. My drugs for free. Okay. You're good with getting this place cleaned up, man. All right. Please don't pull me. Please be. All right. Let's walk out of the truck. Do you have a test or drive by my truck? I have to walk to the truck. You have to what? Do I have to go with that car? Yeah. You have to come with us. You have some shoes or you want? Yeah, I'm getting shoes. They really put me in jail. We're going to go test this. It's going to be positive. He's He's going to When you get your shoes on, we're just going to detain you right now. You're going to be detained. Do we walk out there just cuz we don't want to His was His was good. Your license was good, right? Yeah. Yeah. I thought they said in the call. I was just going to document. We talked to Yeah, his was uh his uh Yell's on the call. I'm just going to document. We talked to you about the campsite. We're already cleaning some other stuff up by Wednesday. So, that's when we need everything. Today's Monday, so you got all day tomorrow and then part of the day Wednesday. So, you need to get what you need, you know, out. I think he had talked to you about gathering a lot of the trash together to help clean up by the other one. Yep. Is that fair? I don't want to add citations and stuff to you on top of that. So, we're trying to work with you like we can find out. What do you find out about her? Yeah. Going up there. Yeah. We're going to go to the go to the truck, test this. Um, make it I don't know what happened. What's that? Please be honest and tell me getting arrested. Yeah, we're gonna go up there and test it. If it tests positive, we'll take you to jail. Um, if none of these needles are loaded, if none of these needles are loaded or anything like that. Um, there's no residue or anything like that. We're not going to do paraphernalia or any of that kind of charge. So, it's going to be a possession charge. Would the bond be on that? Oh, man. I don't know off top of my head. Do you have a phone number that she can call you? Yeah. [Music] You remember number? No, I'll write it down. What's What's the phone number? Do you have any Do you have any charges for any of this kind of stuff before? No, never in my entire life. Never had a drug charge? No, never. Ever. Never. Never. And I have kids. I'm trying to get him back and you're going to ruin everything for me. Everything. More kids. I'm not ruining it for you. No, you are by my honesty. I I I mean, I can tell you guys this. Being cool is the best is the really the best method to go about this. I mean, you're not getting charged for the campsite. We're not hammer down a paraphernalia. We're not getting a dog out here to sniff every inch of this place and get into it. I mean, this is not the end of the world here. Yeah. My one time I'm doing one time. One time. First time. Hold on, ma'am. No, sir. We I don't have any. Are you going to keep the tarps and stuff? Like, could you wrap it up in that? Or maybe that like flat air mattress or something? Yeah. So, is the old boy going to come back from down south to do his other camp or I don't know. I'm going to take care of it. You're you're going to take care of him as well. I mean, I get to keep whatever there, right? I mean, if you got some treasures there or whatever. Yeah. Hey, think about this too. if um if any of our other guys come back here or anything to check up on the camp and they see any drug paraphernalia laying around, whether it be, you know, old stuff from her or whatever, it's going to be in your possession at that point. So, just make sure that, you know, the camp's clean of anything like that if you're going to be taking, you know, is there a fire? Yeah. to hurt Michelle. Um, when we walk out, what is it? Shelly. Shelly. Okay. When we walk out, we're not going to just cuz it's thick and woody and stuff like that and these bugs are bad. Oh, I can show you how to get through. Just listen for a sec. We're going to walk out. You're detained, but you're not actually in handcuffs right now. I understand. Okay. When we get out of the truck, put your hand. I just don't want you having to get these flies tearing you up and all these sticks and stuff to trip over. So, you're going to walk out not in handcuffs. That doesn't mean you're free to go. Okay. So, if you run or anything, it's going to be a resisting charge. All right. Okay. Cuz you lied. You didn't lie. You said I didn't lie about anything. I was honest. There was only a little bit you wouldn't put me in jail. I said I'd make I'd work with you and I'm I'm totally working with you. All right, let's get out here. Grab your cigarette. No, it's not. No, my phone. I need them both. Yeah. All right, last time. Come on. I know. I'm trying. Michelle, you're about to make this a lot worse if you don't start walking out. Come on, let's go. I just tried to walk out earlier. Hey, what was what was your name? Kevin. Kevin. Yes, sir. Appreciate me. Hey. Yeah. I ain't going to put that with the trash. Just put get everything bundled up. Get it get at least consolidated where if they had some crews come up, they could have the guys throw it in the back of a truck and where they're not spending forever picking up separate. Yeah, just do I mean Okay, I got you. Do it. And did you already talked to him about timeline on what you would need? Yeah, Wednesday. Okay, cool. So that's a couple days. All right, man. I'm not trying to ruin your day either. I mean, we hopefully some things start getting better for Michelle here. Yeah. All right, Kevin. I'm going to jail. Literally a tiny little speck and they're they're going to arrest me. They said if I was honest and freaking I gave him whatever I had or sold them whatever I had that I wouldn't go to jail and then they lied. I know. He said I'm I'm going to test positive. I don't want to go. I want my kids now. I won't be able to go to my kids or anything. I You good? [Music]