(La Porte County, IN) - Police say drugs and possibly stolen credit cards were among the items found in a vehicle that broke down on the Indiana Toll Road in La Porte County. 

 

Eric Barnard, 44, of South Bend, is charged in La Porte Circuit Court with possession of methamphetamine and unlawful possession of a syringe, both level 6 felonies, along with Class A misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia.

 

According to court documents, it was dark when officers on January 20 located a disabled vehicle on the shoulder at the 49-mile marker.

 

There were footprints in the snow leading away from the abandoned 2015 Ford Escape, which contained crystal methamphetamine, a glass smoking pipe containing a white powdery substance, and a capped syringe, police said.  

 

Other items in the vehicle included suspected stolen credit cards and several collectible Playboy magazines. Police said the pornographic magazines were inside plastic zip-lock-type bags.

 

Investigators looking for the driver found him inside the lobby at Hampton Inn just north of La Porte along Indiana State Road 39. Police suggest that Barnard went to the hotel to use the Wi-Fi connection to use his cell phone to call for help.