Greentown man charged in Port

Port Jervis. N.Y. — City Police arrested Anthony J. Stearns, age 25, of Greentown, and charged him with third degree criminal possession of marijuana (felony) and second degree Criminally Using Drug Paraphernalia, a misdemeanor. The arrest happened on Jan. 1, at 8:32 p.m. while Port Jervis Police Officer Jeffery Legato was conducting business security checks. Legato saw and investigated a suspicious vehicle with several occupants parked in the rear parking area of a local business. While conducting an investigation at the scene, the officer summoned a Port Jervis canine unit and subsequently conducted a search of the vehicle with the assistance of Officer William Conklin and his canine partner, Mac. They located approximately one pound of marijuana, packaging materials, and a digital scale concealed inside the vehicle. Stearns was subsequently taken into custody and held overnight in the city lock up. Stearns was arraigned in City Court on Jan. 2, and remanded to the Orange County Correctional Facility in lieu of $15,000 bail pending further court action. Canine Mac and his handler, Officer William Conklin, are certified as a tracking, criminal apprehension, and narcotics detection canine team and have been serving with the Port Jervis Police Department’s newly formed K-9 Unit since March of last year.